Innocent
by immeandonlyme
Summary: I have lived in the same house for almost 100 years now. You see, Damon Salvatore came to my little town of Smokey Hills when I was just 10 years old. And he adopted me... I was an orphan, no one wanted me. But Damon did. After returning to him, I am now walking in the sun, dealing with my great, great grand Niece Hayley, and her handsome, annoying baby daddy Niklaus. Family...
1. Chapter 1

I have lived in the same house for almost 100 years now. You see, Damon Salvatore came to my little town of Smokey Hills when I was just 10 years old. And he adopted me... I was an orphan, no one wanted me. But Damon did. I still sort of don't know why. After a few years, I got older, while he didn't. He didn't want to marry like most men, he didn't want to have an heir.

I became more and more like his little sister than his daughter. But I was legally, and still am, his adopted daughter. He told me that no matter what, I would carry his name... and I never loved a person more. He gave me a home. A reason to do something with my life. He gave me a name. Oh, right, I'm Annie, Annie Salvatore.

At least, that's what is written on my gravestone. You see, things got hectic, very hectic. We, as in the town, were celebrating our 30th anniversary. And that is when Stefan showed up. He fed me his blood and just as he was about to kill me, Damon came in. Stefan had gone mad, and told him this was for Damon's own good. And that he would thank him one day. And then he snapped my neck right in front of Damon.

I woke up buried. Thankfully it was dark when I crawled out, or I would have actually been dead. I went back to Damon and I's home and found it empty of all his belongings.

That was the last time I ever had contact with any other human being besides the ones I feed off of.


	2. Chapter 2

I laid in bed, sleep didn't come this morning like it does other mornings. Instead I could almost swear that something like fates kept me awake because around 10am I heard a car pulling up. I got out of bed, walked carefully through the house not to get hit by rays of light.

"You know what Caroline, I don't care. Did that make it all better?" I heard Damon's voice and almost ran outside, but I had to stay put. Any closer, I would burn from the sun.

"Just go inside Damon. We don't have all day." I head Stefan and gasped before sinking back farther into the darkness.

"I don't want to go in, and you know why. I'll just wait out here." He said and I could just tell he was waving Stefan and whoever was named Caroline.

"Whatever." A girl voice said, but it didn't sound like the other voice. "Watch yourself." She stated and then the doors opened with a strong burst and I gasped when the sun hit my legs and I backed up.

"What was that?" I heard someone ask and then I saw Stefan walk in and look around. I kept to the shadows, keeping as quiet as possible. I stepped behind a fallen curtain that was ripped just near my eyes.

"No one is here." He called back and two more footsteps came in. I instantly caught a whiff of a witch, and another vampire.

"You sure?" Caroline asked and walked into the room I was hiding in.

"No other heartbeats." Stefan said and she turned to him and the floor creaked.

"What was that then?" She asked turning around quickly and I rolled my eyes.

"That was you." Stefan laughed and I just closed my eyes.

"Can you just get what we came here for and we can leave?" I heard Damon shout and I wanted to shout back but with Stefan here… I didn't want to risk it.

"Yeah, you said your old room right? Which is which one?" Stefan called back out and I heard a groan. But it wasn't human, someone was going up the stairs.

"First door on the left… stay out of the rest of them." Damon demanded and I just walked out quietly before speeding up the stairs. The others recognized it for what I was doing but I was in Damon's old room, my current room, faster and locked the door before hiding in the old spot Damon used to put me in when he needed to feed. It was to make sure I was protected from those trying to escape from him.

I stood in my jeans, my grey long sleeve, and no shoes when I heard the soft steps coming towards the secret door. A fist pounded and it opened up. Damon stood there, wide blue eyes, floppy black hair, and his shock turned into a smile as he walked in and hugged me.

He didn't let me go even when the two girls walked up behind him and then Stefan behind him.

"You're alive." Damon whispered like he still couldn't believe it. He pulled back and smoothed over my hair and dusted off my cheek before pulling me back in for another hug.

"Damon has a heart." The blonde whispered before laughing.

"Shut it Caroline." Damon snapped turning on her and Stefan was in front of her in a second. "You!" Damon seemed to remember what he had done and he punched him before grabbing at him.

"Damon!" The other girl shouted before he groaned and fell to his knees.

"Stop." I called out and got on my knees burning as I got in the sun and I backed away from him and held my burning flesh.

"You don't have a daylight ring?" Blonde girl, Caroline, asked me helping me to back away.

"Don't." I said and pulled away from her. The witch had obviously stopped hurting Damon because he was up and pulling me away from the light I almost ran right into again.

"You were alive this whole time. You knew you gave her your blood before you killed her." Damon accused and Stefan looked so confused as he stayed back.

"I don't even know who the hell she is." He stated and I looked away and then pushed my hair out of my face.

"Annie." Damon whispered into my hair and hugged me tight again and leaned against the wall and sank down.

"Someone please explain what is going on." The witch asked and I looked over at her.

"Annie is my daughter… adoptive before either one of you even say anything." Damon stated and pulled me closer. "Stefan came into town, watched us for a while. Then he thought it would be a good idea to make me think she was dead by killing her right in front of me." Damon stated and stood up before heading towards Stefan again.

"How long ago was this?"

"His early Ripper days." Damon said after a moment and then cursed before looking back at me.

"So he won't remember, so he couldn't have told you that he changed her." Caroline stated and I looked at all four of them and Damon came closer and held out his hands.

"Annie." He whispered and hugged me again.

"I am still stuck on the fact he said daughter." The witch said and I looked at her.

"More like sister." I stated and looked away from all of them and towards the light.

"You don't have a daylight ring? How long have you been here exactly?"

"Since I was 10… plus about 90 years." I said and looked towards Damon. I was turned when I was just 19.

"99 years." He threw out there and I nodded.

"And Stefan killed you?"

"Snapped her neck right in front of me. Left telling me it was for my own good and that I would thank him one day." Damon whispered and looked from Stefan to me. "I buried you." He whispered and covered his face.

"Yeah." I nodded and tried to suppress the memory of me crawling out of the dirt.

"You have been here-"

"Yeah." I nodded again cutting him off.

"You're getting out of here." He stated and looked towards the witch. "Bonnie, please, make her a day light ring." He said and I she looked over at me before Caroline and nodding at him.

"Where will I go when I am out of here?" I asked him as Bonnie, the witch left and I looked around wary of how Stefan was staring at me.

"With me." He stated and I looked towards Stefan. "Trust me… Annie, he's more likely to help you than hurt you… now anyways." He stated and glared back at his brother.

"Yeah, and I don't even remember you."

"Well, then it's like it never happened." I said and Damon looked back at me and smiled before looking to Stefan.

"You're Ripper self doesn't leave a good impression you know." Damon told him and Stefan sighed and crossed his arms.

"I am not responsible-"

"For killing me or turning me into a vampire?" I asked him and he looked at him and I almost faltered in my glare.

"Either." He stated and I felt that admission hit me in the gut and I looked away.

"Why are you here anyways?" I asked looking at Damon and he looked back at Stefan.

"Find the stupid trinket, we are leaving." He said and looked towards the witch again. "Make one from this." He said and turned towards me and held out his hand. I knew what he was asking for and I pulled my necklace off and handed it over.

She put the necklace in the light, the ring gleaming. I watched Bonnie's face as she mumbled in the spell a couple times before nodding to Damon. He picked it up and moved until he fastened the necklace around my neck. He nodded to me and I stuck my hand slowly into the light. First my fingertips before my whole hand and I smiled at the feeling of warmth.

"C'mon." Damon whispered and grabbed my hand before pulling me along. "We have things to do." He said and I smiled even wider feeling tears coming to my eyes at the feeling of warmth once we were outside in the sun.

"You've saved me again Damon." I whispered and he turned and looked at me with a smile that just showed how happy he was and he hugged me tight. I let the tears fall tucking my head into his neck and letting my tears fall.


	3. Chapter 3

"Do you hear that?" I heard Stefan ask Damon and I looked from both brothers and then Caroline. We were near a big house and before I could try to listen I was jolted forward as the car was put into park. Stefan was out of the car and Damon was already at the close tree line by the time I realized he was gone.

I got out and rushed towards them. "Annie stay back. Get back into the car." Damon called out after turning and seeing me. "I mean it. Go." He said rushing towards me and hauling me back. "Caroline. It seems your lover is back in town. I grew attached to her once, lost her once, keep close to her and he won't hurt her."

"Damon!" I shouted as Caroline grabbed my arm and nodded to him. "I hear fighting..." I whispered to her and she nodded.

"That must mean Tyler is in town too."

"Who exactly is he fighting?" I asked not knowing how she was so calm.

"That would be an original."

"Original Vampire? A wolf? And a... wolf? Niklaus?" I asked her and she nodded.

"How do you know about Klaus?"

"Damon told me everything when I hit 17." I told her and saw two huge wolves growling and clawing at each other. I saw blurs moving around them. Damon stopped, sighed loudly before charging and hitting one and taking away and towards us. Caroline gasped and dragged me back as well but as Damon tackled the beast he drew away quickly and the dog snapped its teeth as it squirmed on its back before taking a huge bite out of my leg.

I screamed and felt the sting before falling right to the ground. I wailed and kicked at the dog and Damon was frozen. But as soon as the cracking of bones sounded through the forest. Damon was out of my sight as I turned over to sit up and Caroline was helping me.

"You are going to die Lockwood. You just bit a vampire." Damon was holding the now human male, make that naked human male by the throat.

"Damon I am fine. It's healing already." I said standing and looking down, but it looked like it was going to hurt.

"It won't heal. It's a werewolf bite." Damon said it slowly like I was stupid and then focused back on the naked guy.

"If anyone is going to kill that mutt it's going to be me." A British accent flowed over us and I looked to see a blonde man, angry and focused on the one Damon was still choking.

"Klaus? What are you doing back here?" Caroline shouted, distracting him yet again and then he smirked at her.

"Love, pleasure to see you again. I'll just kill your ex and be going."

"Leave Tyler alone." Caroline told him before I felt my leg buckle.

"Damon?" I asked before Caroline helped me sit back down.

"Annie, hold on. The venom won't kill you until 24 hours."

"Kill me?" I squeaked and looked from him to the man he was choking not twenty seconds ago as he rubbed his throat and looked towards me. He glared, inhaled through his nose, and then opened his mouth to talk.

"I didn't mean to-"

"You did thought. Now I'll have to beg Klaus-

"Just give my Tyler and I'll give your new plaything a bit of my blood."

"She's my friend Klaus. You'd let one her die just because you want to kill my ex?" I looked towards Caroline and then Klaus.

"Oh love, you wound me. If she is really your friend I'll give you my blood for a simple kiss." He said smirking again. Caroline sighed and walked towards him. He grabbed her, pulled her in, bent her backwards, and kissed her like they were in private. I looked away and Damon helped me up. Stefan came towards us, he was holding clothes. He tossed some on the ground near Tyler before handing some to Klaus.

Tyler at least turned away to put on the shorts and shirt whereas Klaus tugged them on not caring. Caroline was still in a daze and Klaus sauntered p to me.

"Come on little one. We don't have all day." He said offering out his wrist to me. I looked at Damon who sighed and nodded to me. Klaus crouched and offered his wrist again. I took what he offered and let my fangs push through and then struck his vein and drank greedily. He pulled away after a moment and I looked towards Damon.

"Little ole Klaus has a soft spot." He smirked and then waved his hands out for my own. I let him pull me up and I looked down at my leg. The pants were ruined but my skin was now healing.

"I like making deals. And if getting to kiss Caroline anyway I want to is part of that... then I will always live up to my end." He said and then looked to Tyler. "You on the other hand.. if I catch you anywhere near New Orleans I will end you." He looked back at Caroline and stepped closer and in a blur Stefan was between them and glaring at Klaus.

"Back off. A kiss was the deal and since it was to save her life then I let it pass, but don't look at her like that again." Stefan was still scary. I looked away and towards Damon.

"You're going into the house, and you're going to start listening when I tell you to do something." He sighed out and got up breathing heavily before barring his teeth at Tyler. "Stay off my property."

"I came home... I don't need your property. I have the biggest land in the whole town." Tyler sneered at Damon before looking at me. "If it means anything, I am sorry I bit you. It wouldn't have happened if I wasn't knocked in your direction." He sent another glare towards Damon before me and then looking at me for a longer amount of time.

"I can still kill you..." Klaus said and I huddled with Damon.

"Why do you want to kill him?"

"He slipped up."

"The mutt stole my blood." Klaus spat and took steps towards him but Bonnie made an appearance. Klaus fell to his knees and gripped his head.

"Tyler, go home. Klaus, if you don't leave... I can keep this up all day." She told him and let him relax. I looked at her in a whole new light.

"That's my little witch." Damon cheered before standing up and dragging me with him.

"Yours?" I asked him cocking my head to the side and he looked at me and then smirked.

"Not really."

"Step foot out of Mystic Falls and you're mine hybrid." Klaus pointed at Tyler and this disappeared leaving a blur in his wake.

"Now, get in the house." Damon shuffled me and then looked back at Tyler. "You too. I want some of that blood." Damon told him and looked towards the house.

"You were just telling me to get off your property." Tyler told him and then looked at me and then back to Damon. "Who is she?"

"She is Annie. My little minion."

"I'm his daughter." I said slapping Damon and glaring at him.

"Daughter? Really? I knew you fucked everything that smiled at you Damon... but to know you knocked someone up in 1864 and then turned her-"

"Adopted daughter. And Damon didn't turn me." I spoke up and looked away.

"Good to know. But you and Damon have the same eyes." He said and sent me a smile and I looked from him to the ground and Damon when he fake gagged.

"Go get in the house." He waved me off and I glared at him before going towards the house.

"Come on, I will show you where you're room is going to be." Caroline grabbed my arm and pulled me along. As I got closer to the house I chanced a look over my shoulder and met Tyler's eye but I looked ahead of me after a moment of seeing him walking with Damon.


	4. Chapter 4

Tyler and Damon took 2 hours to shout at each other, talk, and try to negotiate. I had sat on the couch as Caroline introduced me to the life of phones, computers, and the internet. I got her number, Damon's and Bonnies. She put Stefan's in but I deleted it. When was I going to want to talk to him?

"I do have a question." I said looking up from the phone to Damon and then towards Caroline.

"What darling daughter?" Damon asked and I turned my glare at him.

"Who do you guys feed on?"

"Bagged blood." Caroline said before standing up. "I'll show you." She sped out of the room and I looked back towards Damon.

"How do you get bagged blood?"

"So precious. It's like you're 10 again." He came closer and pinched my cheeks making Tyler laugh as I smacked Damon's hand away.

"Damon. Answer my question. It's not cute. It's not funny-" I sent a look to Tyler and then focused back on Damon. "I have been in a house for 99 years. After being turned. I had to feed and I killed people. I drink blood. I almost kill a human every night-"

"I kill more than 7 in a week."

"Damon-"

"I am kidding. There are these people called doctors. And we all know about veins in the neck, and arms and all that..."

"Damon!"

"Well they invented this thing called blood bags and it works when there is a tube in a humans vein and it draws it into the bag until it's full. Boom. Blood bag." He said it making his hand space out and I just rolled my eyes before seeing Caroline was in front of me showing me a bag that smelled delicious.

"Its actually not that bad." Tyler said when I looked over the entire bag.

"You're a wolf... how do you know?"

"I'm a hybrid. Half wolf, half vampire. I can eat food and need to drink blood." He said with a slight shrug. "Get to live forever too." He nodded and then looked towards Damon. "Can I go now."

"No... I am going to get a vial of that blood."

"Then you guys can spend another two hours arguing. I am going to drink this... and then I am going to get some sleep." I announced and played a bit with the blood inside the bag before looking at Caroline who sat down next to me.

"It's seriously great. I used to bite people when I first turned. Killed a guy. This way, you know there is no guilt." She told me and I nodded. Agreeing immensely with the no guilt thing.

"Take a bite, suck, and get to bed." Damon demanded and I looked back at him and glared. Just as I was about to yell at him I felt the yawn breaking loose and I covered my mouth. "See. You're tired."

"Shut it Damon." I said before looking down at the blood and feeling my mouth water. I felt just under my eyes tingle as my fangs lengthened and I pulled the bag up. I sank my teeth into the plastic. It felt odd. I had to admit I preferred human skin. It's warmth. But the blood seeping into my mouth was worth the plastic. I drank it all and I gasped when it was all gone and licked my lips and sighed.

"I'm guessing you liked it." Damon said and I threw the empty bag at him and he winked. "Now, to bed." He said pointing to the hallway.

"Yes dad." I growled out and stood up. I wiped my mouth as I walked past him and saw Tyler looking at me. His eyes were a hint of yellow and tracing all over my face and I wiped one more time just to be sure I got all the dribbles. I was out of the room and into the hallway and towards the stairs. I turned and jogged up them when I heard someone walking down the other side.

Not making eye contact with Stefan as I went right to my room. I knew Stefan was just down the hall, but thankfully Damon's room was right next to mine.

"Guess this is goodnight for you." He spoke and I ignored him and then pushed open my door before closing it and leaning against it. I looked to the dresser Caroline said she had stacked up with other clothes, comfortable clothes. I walked over and pulled out sweat pants and a tank top. I went into the side bathroom and changed my clothes.

I walked back out. Drew the thick curtains closed and then crawled into bed. I curled up on my side. Pulling the pillow close to my chest and then using the other one behind me so it seemed like someone was holding me.

I fell asleep instantly dreaming of my new life here. I would go around town. Get to know people. Make friends. Not kill people. Live with Damon again. It didn't all make sense. Like how Tyler came into my dreams. Making me smile. Holding my hand. Making me laugh. Kissing my cheek and making me blush.

I awoke to some lips on my forehead and woke up to see Damon crouching beside me. "You look 10 again. Holding that pillow like that damn bunny you had." He said and I smiling and snuggled into the pillow again. "Yep...10." He said and reached up to brush some hair out of my face. "I should have stayed."

"I should have followed you." I told him back and I just blinked and started playing with the blankets.

"You didn't know what way I would go. I never talked about leaving. I never wanted to leave you behind. And I doubt the only thing you would want to do is travel as you hit the age of marrying off, and having babies-"

"You knew me better than that. I would have traveled with you. I would have loved seeing the world. Husband and kids be damned." I said and he smiled.

"You would have been a great momma." He told me and I sighed and looked towards the floor.

"I'm hungry." I told him changing the subject and pushing the covers off.

"Nice... let's go down to the seller. I will show you where you can get the blood when you want it." He said standing up and then taking me with him. I trotted behind him hearing music down stairs. We passed a couple of people in the main room. They were laughing, dancing even, and I knew all of them already. Caroline, Bonnie, Jeremy, Matt, and Tyler.

I caught Bonnie's eye and her attention made everyone else look over just before I was out of sight. We went down another set of stairs and I saw him open a freezer and I noticed all the blood bags stocked up. I made a grab for one and brought it to my mouth but Damon laughed and took it from me before my fangs could strike.

"It's like a juice pouch. Here." He tugged one thing and then pulled it up to his lips to suck and it was like a straw. "Less messy." He told me and handed it back and I nodded before drinking it all down. It quenched my hunger right away and I just licked my lips as it all went down my throat. "Now, party, tour of the town? Or do you want to ditch the whole hitch here and explore the world."

"Very funny. But I will be up for a tour around town." I said and he smiled.

"Go get dressed." He bossed and I blinked and nodded before going towards the upstairs.

I got to my room, pulled on my jeans and white shirt and then saw some flip flops Caroline had just let me borrow. Once I was ready I walked down and saw Tyler talking with Damon and I just walked towards them.

"Gentlemen... I'm ready Damon." I nodded to him before backing away. It wasn't proper to be in a man's conversation with another man.


	5. Chapter 5

"You know you could have just pushed the hybrid away and nodded to me and we could have been out of here 20 minutes ago." Damon said and I just walked towards him and towards his car. I smiled when he opened the car door for me and I just slipped in.

"It's considered rude to interfere with your discussions that I am not apart of." I told him folding my hands in my lap as he walked around quickly and got in on his side. He started it and I had to admit, I liked the rumbling of the engine. I kept my back straight as can be as he sped around his drive and gunned the engine to make it go even faster.

"There are different rules now little one. You do not walk behind me, instead, beside me or in front of me. Women rule this world, basically anyways. Don't like Caroline know I said that, or Bonnie." He said pointing his finger at me. "You don't need to hold your tongue if someone says something ill about me nor you. You will stick up for yourself." He commanded and I nodded.

"So, this is the town?" I asked looking around a bit.

"Yep, and this is where we are going to get something to eat as if we were human." He said pulling over at the Mystic Grill.

He got out and I followed shutting the door with a little extra force and giving him an apologetic look. I took his words from before in and walked up and walked beside him all the way to an open seating area. He sat down first with his back to the door, and then I took the other watching it.

"Oh lookie here, Damon. Whose the new one?" I heard someone and turned to see a female I didn't know and she was giving Damon a dirty look that she then turned on me.

"This is my little sister." Damon said appeasing the woman somewhat.

"Sister? I didn't know you had one."

"And why would you? Getting jealous over my brother having lunch with another girl isn't something he is really all for. If you knew my brother at all, you would know he hated women trying to claim him." I knew Damon hated women who were clingy. I knew that much from being raised by him. He was a notorious lover back then, and apparently he still is now.

"Mmm, what can I get you two?" The woman shut her trap, kept her looks to the paper in front of her and waited as Damon ordered my 'favorite' food and then himself something I didn't recognize.

I stayed quiet as she walked away before asking what the sushi was and he laughed and tried to explain it to me. I made a face at he raw fish comment and he smiled. "It's actually not that bad." He told me and I fake gagged. He laughed again before looking over my face. "You grew up so fast." He murmured and I smiled.

"You were just saying how I was a 10 year old and now I am old? Thanks dad." I muttered and then caught myself before giving him a small smile.

"You can call me that... I am still your dad. I always will be. However, around the humans, you just call me Damon. I assure you that it will come easily once again since that was what you called me whenever you were angry about something I did in the house." He smiled and leaned forward as the waitress gave him a glass of the bourbon he loved and then sat down the sparkling water that didn't actually sparkle. It just had bubbles in it.

I took a sip, somewhat pleased with the taste, and then set it back down. He leaned forward and winked. "How about I tell you about the people who live here, and used to." He offered and I nodded happily. "Who to start with?" He asked and I blinked.

"How about why you came back here." I had known about Mystic Falls for as long as I can remember, and I knew he vowed to never return unless Stefan was creating some trouble.

"After I buried you... I uh, I turned off my humanity. I tormented and killed and well... did very bad things. Then after some time, obviously, I heard through a bird that Stefan was back here, in high school, where he met a similar looking Katherine. I just had to meet her." He said and then downed the rest of his drink before snapping his fingers in the air.

The waitress made haste and brought him a new glass filled a bit more and then backed away with the empty one. I tilted my head and gave him a look telling him I was waiting.

"And that started things up again with The Originals coming and trying to get all of her blood as a sacrifice, and then Katherine happened, she died, she had a daughter, um, killed an original, found out when you do that... their entire sire line dies. So we didn't kill anymore originals." He said and spaced out for a moment.

"So the originals are obviously the original vampires-"

"Not quite... which brings around the other things... the first doppelgangers, and then I was trapped in the dead people word thing and-"

"Wait!" I stopped him at the word dead and he gave me his 'slick' smile and I sighed and then gave him a look. "Elaborate." I ordered and he started taking his time, letting me know everything.

He told me every single time Stefan saved him, and how many times Stefan helped pick him up and try and get him better. Eventually as we got to the part of him being trapped with Bonnie we left the restaurant and started walking an area around town. I listen intently and then sat down wondering how many times over both of our long lives that I could have lost him.

My stomach lurched and I felt the tears come and then I was being grabbed and held by Damon and I was hugging him back. But before too long he tensed and I pulled back just a bit. "It's time to go." He whispered and I took the time to look around before smelling it. Blood.

I felt the veins to emerge and my stomach seemed hallow for a whole other reason. My mind went blank, and I looked for the food, the human. Damon was calling my name and trying to stop me and I kept getting away.

I was then hugged to a whole other chest, hands restrained at my side and then I heard Damon and Tyler speaking and walking with me between them. Tyler was holding my face in the crook of his neck and I smelled his blood racing through his jugular and I was so close I could taste him.

"Go ahead." I heard a whispered husky voice as they maneuvered me around a building and blocked from view. I didn't need to be told twice. I struck, grabbing the hair at the back of his neck and tilting his face away and feasting, and not gentle either.

I broke away pushing him aside and sank down to the ground, head between my legs, hands shaking, and my breath coming out shaky.

I hated feeding off of people. I took deep breaths before trying to remember how to get back to the Salvatore estate. I got there and ran inside and then up to my room almost knocking Stefan over as well as Caroline who was right behind him. I got to my room and barricaded the door.

I let the tears fall, hating how weak I was, and, how much I loved doing what I knew was wrong.

I closed my eyes, evened my breathing, and then got up and laid on the bed. ON my back I looked blankly, trying to clear my mind of everything. I blanked out for a moment. A happy moment before sighing when I heard a car pull up outside.

I knew it was Damon, and maybe even Tyler so I stayed still. Breathing and trying to stay calm. Tears didn't belong when being scolded.

The pounding of four feet coming up the stairs got me to sit up. I expected Damon, not Damon, Tyler, Caroline, and Stefan. I braced myself.

Hands under my legs, my head down, and my eyes closed until Damon pushed his way in and came towards me.

I waited knowing he was going to yell but he just gripped my chin and lifted it to look me in the eye. "It's different now... you're not in trouble." He told me and I just kept my head down and my eyes away from Tyler and also Stefan.

Being angry at Stefan for doing what I basically just did to Tyler.

"I'm not mad at you for feeding-"

"You should be! You should be... this is not normal. Feeding off of Tyler in public... having to feed off of him because I can't control myself when I get the faintest sniff of food. You should be angry, you should be shouting at me, and punishing me." I shouted back before running my hands through my hair and pulling it.

Footsteps came closer and I sighed before keeping my hair in my face. "Hey." I heard Tyler's voice just before his hand touched my knee. "Look at me," He said and I felt the hand move as hair moved from my face. "please." He whispered and I gulped before opening my eyes and looking right into his eyes. "I don't care that you fed off of me. I would rather you feed off of me than expose us. I wanted to find that blood source just as much as you did. But seeing you going for it and hearing Damon calling for you made even me snap out of it." He told me and I felt Damon start to shift and he crossed his arms narrowing his look on Tyler.

"But I didn't snap out of it." I whispered knowing that he was technically second best at the food I could have had.

"You just need to have a reason to snap out of it." He told me with a huge smile and I just gave him a worried look before looking around the room.

Everyone seemed to nod and then Damon snapped his fingers and I looked to him but he was looking at everyone else.

"Out." He ordered and waved them out and Tyler gave my hand a squeeze and I watched him walk out and wait. Just before he closed the door he made eye contact with me and sent me a wink before closing the door quickly when Damon cleared his throat.

"What am I going to do? When I didn't have a ring I could handle it. It was under control then. I'm not now. I can walk around in the warmth again but that also means I might just come across more victims than I ever want to think about." I voiced and looked Damon in the eye as his ice blue ones were trained on me.

"You're going to do just what Tyler was taught, as well as Caroline. Control. A reason to snap out of it... you'll start tomorrow. But it will be my by way." He said and I nodded. "Now, get some more sleep. Alone. I don't want that Lockwood boy in your room again." He said and I rolled my eyes lightly.

"I almost drank him dry, I am sure he is not up for half the things that are happening in your head." I said knowing I took a lot of blood from Tyler.

"He's a hybrid, you would be amazed at what he can do." Damon muttered and I just swallowed and smiled as he kissed my forehead. "You will learn... it's like you were 10 again, learning to write and read from me." He cheered and I rolled my eyes as he got closer to my door. "Tomorrow, bright and early." He said and I blinked and nodded.

He walked out and I sighed and snuggled into the blankets. I felt the wave of exhaustion and gave into it easily. Fully. Sleeping like the dead I should be.


	6. Chapter 6

"You're better." Tyler told me as we all made our way through town. I had been training with Damon for a week. I smelled all the humans around us but none of them were bleeding so I was okay.

"For now." I nodded to him and then looked around seeing everyone starting to sit down. We were here to watch some kind of movie and to test me and I didn't want to disappoint. "What was the movie again?" I asked him and he smiled down at me.

"Gone with the Wind. Caroline's favorite." He said with a hefty sigh before unfolding the blanket that he had been carrying.

"Did you court Caroline?" I asked noticing how he tried very hard not to look in her direction as she cuddled up with Stefan.

"If that is what you want to call it. I couldn't stand her while she was human, and then I became a wolf... and she helped me through it. Never told anyone. We were good friends and that developed into more... and then we changed. I left, she moved on." He said shortly and I helped him get the food out of the basket he had carried as well.

"And you have no more feelings or wish to have no more feelings?" I asked tilting my head at him and then looking towards the couple.

"I have none... but I still feel way too uncomfortable around them." He said and shrugged. "Kind of comes with the ex girlfriend territory. We're all friends but we're no longer that close." He said and I nodded thinking about how it would feel.

"So who are you courting now?" I asked and noticed some people were starting to crowd around and set up their own blankets and seats and I took a moment and got a good look around.

"No one."

"Really? Is the seasonal things not going on in this town any more?" I asked and he laughed.

"Why are you laughing?" I heard Damon before he moved to sit next to me.

"I guess I said something wrong." I muttered and looked away and to the screen that was now being lit up with some kind of loading bar.

"She asked about a seasonal thing... what is that?" Tyler laughed and I swallowed hard and looked around trying to space out from Tyler making fun of the only things I knew.

Instead I focused on what my first Season, well, my only Season was like.

 _"I hope you are well rested my dear. I have a surprise for you." I heard Damon before he started pushing open my curtains. One of the maids was walking in behind him with a big box. She had a sly smile on her face and she set the box down on my lap as I sat up._

 _"What is this?" I asked and moved to undo the bow._

 _"You're father and I had a small talk. You confided in me about wanting this to be your first season and I wanted you to be happy before I have to leave you." She said and tangled her fingers in her apron._

 _"Bethany is getting married and while I know she would love to keep working here her fiancé is moving closer to New York for work. She told me about your wishes and since you are almost 18 I didn't see why not." He said nodding to the box. "Go on and open it. I had Bethany pick it out."_

 _I looked from both of them and then to the box before lifting the lid. There was a bonnet on top, a lovely Caribbean Blue and a soft yellowish gold. I pulled that out and set it down before getting out of bed and moving to lift the rest of the present out. The dress was beautiful. It would bring out my eye color like the blue usually does, and it was short enough I wouldn't trip on it._

 _"What do you think?" Bethany asked nibbling her bottom lip and I smiled._

 _"It's beautiful." I said before hugging her and then turning and hugging Damon. "Thank you Dad."_

 _"Let's get you washed up and then you can meet your father down stairs for breakfast before going into town." Bethany offered out and I smiled as the day got started. I ate a simple egg breakfast after getting dressed. I would save the amazing new one for the ball tomorrow night._

 _Damon took me out to the shops and let me look for new shoes and even sprang for a little lip care. I walked beside him, passing newly married people. Even a newly pregnant couple. Then there were those who had already started to talk and court before the Season even started._

 _Parents were making arrangements and vowing their children together and when Damon and I went for a carriage ride I decided to ask. "Have you thought of a match for me?"_

 _"What?" He asked turning to me and I gulped._

 _"Have you thought of a match for me? You know to marry? I love the thought of finally being able to dance and have an evening with a guy... but did you want me to take this seriously?"_

 _"I want you happy. If you find someone you love, you are free to ask me about offering your hand. But I want you to really think about just settling down." He said and I nodded._

 _"You make me the happiest person in the world Damon. Having you as a father made me the luckiest girl, and you've taken such good care of me-"_

 _"You don't have to thank me Annie. You're the base of my humanity. You were never supposed to know what I am, but you know. And you love me as a father, and aren't scared of me." He said and I nodded and moved to lean my head on him. "Any man you choose, as long as he checks out, he will make you happy."_

 _"You'll never leave me right?" I asked and gulped when he didn't answer me right away._

 _"I might have to move on when people realize I haven't aged in 10 or more years. But I will never go far. And if you want you can always write me and come to see me." He said and I gulped._

 _I didn't ask him about coming with him. Because I didn't want to think about him saying no. About him saying I needed to stay here and find a husband. He seemed to want to make sure I find one this year or even next season._

* * *

"Annie, are you listening?"

"Sorry, spacing out." I muttered and put my head down before looking towards Damon.

"I was asking what your first Season was like." Tyler asked and I noticed he wasn't laughing anymore, he actually looked intrigued.

"Short." I muttered and looked to Damon before the screen that was now displaying some people on it. "What was the movie again?"

"Caroline's favorite muse. Gone With The Wind." Damon muttered and moved to lay back and close his eyes. "Wake me up when it's over."

"If you don't want to be here then why are we here?" I asked knowing I wasn't really all that happy with sitting in the dirt and watching a movie I had never even heard of.

"Because you need a bit of culture. This movie is perfect for you right now. After this we can catch you up on better movies."

"First pants, then makeup, then hair things, and then movies... what's next?"

"Driving." Damon said like it was no big thing but I looked at him and started to shake my head. "Oh you'll drive... I need you to learn it."

"Why? You drive, I can run fast. I don't need a car lesson." I said and gulped feeling myself get way more worried.

"Driving is no big thing Annie. I couldn't wait to drive-"

"You grew up around cars. I grew up with horse and carriages. I want to go home." I said getting up and looking for a way out from the circle of people.

"Fine I will walk you-"

"I am going to my home. I can't be here." I breathed and shook my head at Damon before looking around. I passed Caroline. She was sitting without Stefan and I didn't think much about that until I was in the clear and running as fast as I could.

I made it close to the town line when I saw Tyler in front of me. "You're not leaving." He said moving in front of me as I tried to pass him.

"I am. I can't be here." I backed away before trying to just run at him to push him out of the way but he just caught me and held me to his chest. I squirmed and kicked but just after he moved one hand away from my arms another pair were grabbing me.

"Calm down... I promised Damon I wouldn't let you leave, and I intend to keep it." I heard Stefan and screamed loudly so anyone that would hear would come and try to save me.

Tyler shoved his hand over my mouth and I tried to bite to hurt him so he would let me scream again but before long Damon was in front of me. "Let me go. Let me go home." I begged and he shook his head. "Please. I don't belong here." I cried and felt my knees give out. Damon nodded to Stefan and I felt a slight pinch as he broke my neck, once again.


	7. Chapter 7

"Wake up little one." I heard Damon and I took a deep breath as I opened my eyes.

"You had your brother break my neck." I whispered and looking over at him. He moved closer and I pulled away and sat up in the corner.

"You were trying to flee-"

"So you have him kill me all over again!?" I shouted and he took a moment before nodding. "Get away from me." I told him and turned my face away.

"Annie-"

"Get out!" I shouted and covered my ears. I didn't want to hear anything from him. He made his brother kill me again. In the same way. I felt him touch my arm and I screeched and smacked him before getting off the bed and into the far corner. "Out!" I shouted again and felt the sob tear through my chest and I watched his walk out of the room. I heard a lock go into place and I just sat there.

The floor felt slightly cold but I didn't care. I was locked in some kind of dungeon and I was a prisoner. I cried for hours. I jumped again when I heard something creek open.

"I know you're hungry. Damon left and I don't know when he will be back." I heard Stefan and I kept still. "Look... I get that it was horrible to relive-"

"Leave me alone. Keep your blood." I called out steeling my voice to sound resolute.

"If you don't eat you will starve-"

"Not like you care. I told you to leave me alone." I snapped and look at the small hole he was talking to me through.

"Just take the food-" I heard it drop but I didn't move. It could rot on the floor for all I care. If I was going to be kept in here I would rather starve. I stayed where I was. Not getting on the bed. Not moving towards the door.

I slept like that. For days it felt like. Damon came in everyday. Tried to get me to eat, cleaned up the blood that went to waste. Caroline came in one day and I was set on ignoring her too. Except she told me about how her dad had tortured her. Kept her in a basement like Damon was doing me and I heard about how Tyler got her out. As well as her mother.

Two more days and someone just opened the door. No one came in and it seemed like they were letting me leave. But I didn't trust it and stayed where I was. An hour later I heard Damon shouting and the door slammed shut and locked in place. "Who left the door open!?" Damon shouted and I sighed. It wasn't a trick.

I felt too weak to get up and move anyways. I should just go back to sleep. "Annie." I felt someone shaking my shoulder and I opened my eyes a sliver before seeing Tyler out of the corner of my eye. It hurt to look at him for too long so I closed my eyes and tried to get back to sleep. I felt him pick me up and I just leaned against him since he took the support of the wall away.

"What's happening?" I whispered when I realized we were in a car and he was driving.

"I am taking you to my place." He told me and moved one hand closer to me. "Feed." He ordered and I turned my face away. "Come on, when you get better I will take you anywhere you want to go." He promised and I looked over at him. "Feed."

I took his wrist and felt his pulse. I blinked and he was carrying me again. "What happened?"

"You fed and passed out." He told me and I sighed and looked around. "I am going to put you in bed for a little bit. I am going to get something to eat. You finish resting and then you can feed again."

"Okay." I whispered as he started to go up stairs. I tried to stay awake to see where to go when I woke up but I just fell right back to sleep.

"Annie." I heard his voice again and he was beside me on the bed. "You can feed again." He whispered and pulled me so I was against him and he offered up his wrist. I did feel better but I was starving. I latched on and pushed my self up until I was hunched over, drinking Tyler's blood, and holding on until he started to rub my head and telling me I needed to let go.

I took deep breaths and he pulled me back against him again and I felt him fall asleep. I took a moment to look around. And as the starvation dissipated, I realized I was still in the sell. Tyler was feeding me, and he did set me on a bed, but he leaned me against the wall again, and was walking out.

"Let me go." I whispered and he turned as Damon walked into sight just behind him.

"No can do Little Orphan Annie." I heard Damon respond and I saw Tyler look almost apologetic but I turned my face away and I felt lost. Damon was supposed to be my hero. My dad. And yet he was making me do all of this. Making me feed, making Tyler give me false hope of getting away. Letting me cry myself to sleep and cry myself into oblivion.

"You're a real dick."

"I know... but that girl- she is my daughter. She thinks it is ok to give up and leave me... never again. So run along wolf. You served your purpose. Come back again tomorrow." Damon slapped Tyler somewhere before I heard his footsteps going away. Damon stayed leaning in the doorway. I felt a sob tear its way out and I winced when Damon came inside. "Annie... I need you."

"I want to go." I mumbled out over my crying and looked towards him. I felt the tears clogging my eyes and I knew that they were really about come falling down and he noticed it too. He came closer and sat on the bed and grabbed my hand from my lap. He held it tightly and I looked at him.

"I don't want you to go. I want you to stay here. I want you to be my little Annie again. I want to help you learn new things. I want to help you with your control. I want to help you get used to my life because I don't want you to ever leave it again. Even if I know you're alive somewhere else. I want you to be my daughter again."

"Damon-" I stopped and tried to pull my hand away but he kept it tight. He stood up and dragged me up and the help of Tyler's blood let me stand on my own even though it didn't matter when he pulled me in for a hug that let my feet dangle a bit.

"I don't just want you... I need you here Annie." He whispered and tightened the hug and I took a moment to think about my life. About what I could possibly do if I did leave him. I could do nothing without help. I wouldn't last 10 minutes in the outter world of Mystic Falls.

I moved my hands to his back and tensed them to show him I was almost accepting this. If I did this, then I would leave. Eventually. He wasn't going to be my father. Ever. He had Stefan kill me again... he had planned on that.

How can I trust someone like that?


	8. Chapter 8

"Look at you, all flush and worrisome." I heard an accent and turned over to see a guy with Bonnie. I rolled all the over before sitting up. "Name is Enzo. Damon asked me to feed you-"

"You can tell Damon to shove his fist through his chest and take out his own heart." I said and moved towards standing. I did feel stronger.

"I knew I would like you. You know I am probably the only person Damon ever told about you. He said you were so innocent."

"Try living a hundred years alone." I spat and rolled my shoulders before going towards the open door. I walked out and heard them walking behind me.

"He said that he should have never brought you into his world."

"Yeah, I was a regret to my real parents, and regret to Damon. That is pretty clear." I said and saw the small fridge that was full of blood bags. I took a moment before getting a bag out and drinking it. I saw Bonnie rub Enzo's back and she went away. I wiped my chin and felt a blood drop and looked at Enzo who seemed to be watching me for a reason.

"Damon is in New Orleans." He told me and I shrugged.

"Tell him not to look for me when he gets back." I suggested and I moved to walk past him. He let me get all the way towards the front door when I stopped and thought about how I would need things. I went back towards my room to see a big purse that Caroline once used and I grabbed that before going and picking out jeans and shirts and even grabbed a washrag and a reusable water bottle.

I got things set up and when I was walking out I saw Caroline walking in and she gave me wide eyes. "You're supposed to be-"

"Dead... or starving, or locked away." I offered out as I kept walking. I walked to the town limits and looked around. I didn't care for this place. I didn't care for the people. And knowing Damon, and his wild idea of needing to care for me. I got to walking, compelling my way until I was half way through Tennessee and came face to face with another vampire. He tilted his head left to right looking me over and I just waited patiently.

"How old are you cutie?" He asked moving his hand forward and running his hand over my cheek and pushed his hand away.

"Old enough for that line not to work on me." I said hoping he wouldn't keep using a line. I could tell from the movies Caroline and I watched together the first week of my training that was what he was doing.

"Oh... my apologies. What's your name?"

"Just let me keep moving. I would like to get to California before it goes under water." I said and rolled my eyes before moving around him. I felt him move and then he was in front of me again.

"Now, that is not nice." He commented and I looked over his face before sighing and glaring at him.

"I am not a nice person. Not anymore. So, as I said, I just want to keep moving." I said and moved around him one more time. He was not my type. I would like to think that the person I would feel anything for would be tall. He would be like a normal man back in my time. Dark hair, dark eyes. A gentleman.

I paused when I kept walking because I heard people fighting. I turned back to see a man in a suit. Blood now coating his hand as he dropped the other vampires heart and looked towards me. "Where are the others?" He asked coming closer to me and I just looked at him to the dead guy.

"Listen... I see that you killed that guy... and I would tell you exactly where the 'others' are," I said putting air-quotes around the others, "but I am seriously passing through and he was annoying me too. So thanks... but I can't help." I said and backed away just a bit. I felt my heel quiver when it didn't come in contact with something and I looked back to see a small pond and then back to the man in the suit.

"Who are you?" He asked and I looked from the dead body to the man and took a breath.

"Annie Salvatore." I said and he looked at me, his face scrunched up as he looked me over and walked closer.

"Do not lie to me. Who are you?"

"Listen... like I said before why would I lie to you? You just killed that guy and I would rather not be next." I said and moved to hold my hands up and look at him.

"Salvatore? You wouldn't be related to Damon and Stefan would you?" He asked moving closer and I took another step back before almost falling back but just like his quick reflexes, I moved forward instead as he pulled me and I knocked him back a few steps and I pulled away again.

"Damon was my adoptive father when I was human, and Stefan turned me. You know them?" I asked and looked him over. They didn't mention anything about him.

"Damon? A father?" He said and gave a small chuckle.

"And as you can tell I am going the opposite way of where I am headed. Damon isn't the best father, and that is blatantly obvious. So if you are done questioning me-"

He moved faster than I thought and grabbed me around my neck and kept me close. "Damon has my niece, a little girl. And I will use you to get her back." He said and I grabbed his hand and felt his other hand moving towards the other side of my head.

"I will help you just please don't snap my neck." I begged and felt my panic rising. He looked over my face as he paused and took a moment.

"If you go back on me your heart will be ripped out just as easily as him. Do you understand? And if you help I will protect you until you are done. You have my word."

"Okay." I said and he slowly took his hand away from my throat and I backed up a bit. "What do you need me to do?"

"I am going to call him, you are going to act scared, and when I get Hope back you can leave." He said and I gulped and looked from him to the hanky he pulled out to clean his hand off in.

"You can use the water." I motioned towards the pond and he raised an eyebrow at me before the water. "Or not." I whispered and put my hands behind my back waiting as he finished cleaning his hand and pulled out his phone.

He went through his phone before hitting a number and holding it up to his ear. "Hi big brother Original. What can I do you for?" I heard Damon and I rolled my eyes.

"You have a member of my family... and now I have a member of yours." He said and moved to look at me.

"Yeah? And who would that be?" He asked and I took a moment before the man looked at me and I held out my hand for the phone.

"Damon... who is he?" I asked and sniffled before the guy held out his hand.

"Elijah! She is not safe around humans! How did you even get her?" I heard Damon and rolled my eyes and moved to sit down. I rolled my ankles as Elijah made demands and he turned to me.

"Is it true that you can't be around humans?" Elijah, apparently, asks and I looked from him to the people in the far off distance.

"As long as I am not around them when they are bleeding I am perfectly fine. I was working on control around bleeding humans when Damon had his brother snap my neck all over again." I said and took a big breath of air and looked at him.

"Stefan snapped your neck?" He asked and I looked towards him and then down.

"I was having a freak out and tried to go home. Damon wouldn't let me, and he had Stefan kill me again. I was turned during one of his ripper phases, and he was brutal." I said and he looked over my face and moved closer.

"Let's depart. Like I mentioned before, there are others, and I would rather not risk you when they find the body of their comrade." He said and held out his arm for me to take.

"Where are we going?"

"New Orleans." He told me and I took a moment before looking at me.

"That's where Damon is." I said and he put his hand on mine.

"Where my family is." He told me and I nodded again. I can't believe that Damon stole someone's baby. Someone's child.

"Let's go." I nodded and we both sped towards it. We stopped once when I didn't know which way to go and when he guided me I made it to the French Quarter with him. He led me into a home and I looked around as he guided me around the compound and called out for Klaus. That was a name I recognized.

"Now that is a familiar face... got her for leverage did you?" Klaus asked coming down the stairs and looking at me.

"No, she is here to help us. She left Mystic Falls and I was going to use her, but she offered her services anyways." Elijah said and I looked from one brother to the other and wondered if they were anything like Damon and Stefan.

"What was your name again love?" Klaus asked and I took a moment to focus.

"Annie." I licked my lips and waited for them to tell me what I was supposed to do.

"So, how are you helping?" He asked and blinked expectantly.

"Well, he already called Damon, I acted scared and they made a deal for a trade." I said and looked towards Elijah.

"And when is this taking place?" Klaus asked and I yawned and felt a bit hungry.

"When he wants. He wouldn't hurt Hope, but I have a feeling he is having someone preform a spell on her. Thankfully we have our own spell on your daughter that prevents her from being spelled until she is 18 unless it is by our sister." Elijah said with a shrug and I kept my head down. They were talking business and I wasn't apart of it.

"I dare say you answer when you are spoken to Annie." I heard Klaus and I looked up stunned.

"Sorry, I was not paying attention. You two are talking business and I have none with you besides helping, do you want me to step out?" I asked wondering what they had been talking about.

"I asked how long ago did you turn."

"Less than a hundred years." I supplied and he nodded and narrowed his eyes on me.

"How old were you when you turned?" He asked and I supplied him with answers to all his questions. It wasn't until I heard someone calling for him that he stop. "Stay down here." He ordered me and I nodded and moved to sit down. I stayed upright and crossed my ankles as they both disappeared upstairs. I took a moment to look around and I noticed flowers and maps and a few things just laying about but I stayed where I was.

They didn't come down until 20 minutes later and they had a woman with them this time. "You're Annie? I am Freya. They're older sister. I need your help."

"How can I be of more help?" I asked standing and heading with her she was waved me on. I had just turned my back to Klaus and Elijah when I felt something go into my neck. It burned and I fell to my knees. Elijah was just in front of me as someone kept injecting me, my guess Klaus.

"Forgive me." He whispered and my vision blurred before it went completely black and I went slack.


	9. Chapter 9

I woke up in a room, the bed was sideways, the doors to my right were open and I heard music and chanting and basically a party. I moved closer. Realizing someone left my bag near me I went to get a slight jacket and wrapped it around me before going to see what was happening. Looking out it looked like a parade. I looked at all the people, some women flashing and a lot of booze being shared and poured and cheering was coming around from other homes and balconies around the Quarter.

"Good evening Ms. Salvatore." I turned and noticed Elijah watching me from the doorway.

"What happened?" I asked staying far away from him and he looked down before looking back at me.

"My brother and sister didn't trust you. So they did a spell. It made you talk in your sleep and reveal all your secrets and true intentions." He said and I blinked before turning away and looking back out.

"And Damon still has your niece?" I asked and he walked closer.

"Yes. He is demanding to hear from you again. He thinks Klaus might bite you and let you die before we make the trade." He said and pulled out his phone and held it out.

"I don't like using those." I said shaking my head and he gave me a confused look before typing away on it and holding it out. I took it this time hearing it ring and after the second dial I heard Damon's voice being sarcastic.

"Damon... no one has hurt me. No one is making me say that. The only thing they did was give me a shot of vervain to put me to sleep." I said and went to hand it back to Elijah but Damon called out my name. "What?"

"You left. Enzo said you did. Where were you going?" He asked and I sighed.

"Away from that room you locked me in." I said and this time held it out for Elijah. He took it and asked about the when and where and when Damon asked to talk to me again I turned away from the phone and shook my head. Elijah was nice enough to tell Damon that I was just about to eat before saying he would let me call back in a few hours.

"You said Damon was your father." He mentioned and I looked over my shoulder at him and nodded.

"Adopted. He found me when I was 8 in 1890. Adopted me like it was no big thing. When I was 12 I found out his secret, and we just sort of went with it. He started to feed in the house, I thought I was okay with it and then Stefan showed up. I waited almost a 100 years to see Damon after Stefan killed me and turned me. And when I get to see him again, he is a completely different guy. And Stefan made him that way." I said and leaned against the doors.

The Damon I knew... he was sweet and caring and loving. He wouldn't backstab, blackmail, starve someone, lock someone up against their will. I don't know what happened in the last 100 years while I was stuck but Stefan started it. He started it by killing me in front of Damon and not telling him that I was turned.

"What happened to your real parents?" Elijah asked loudly and I wondered if he had asked that question a couple times before.

"Didn't have any. Someone dropped me off 4 months after I was born at the local Orphanage. All the families around weren't missing a baby, so the town chalked it up to me being a harlots baby. She went out of her way to drop me off in a whole other town in the middle of the night. Thankfully it was summer time and I didn't freeze to death. At least she waited." I said and glanced at him before jumping when someone threw a stack of necklaces up in the air and it made it on the balcony.

Elijah had reacted and caught them before taking them apart and tossing them down in different directions and then turned to me and held out the last one. I took it gently and watched his reaction before he smiled and waved me to the edge. "I never get used to it. Seeing all the people, so innocent and clueless even while we watch from above." Elijah said and I looked at them all. The cheers and heartbeats made me hungry. I felt the veins emerge under my eyes and I took a step back.

"I shouldn't." I said when he looked back at me in question.

"Hungry?" He asked and I nodded. "I, myself, don't prefer bagged blood but I am sure we can find more for you." He said coming back into the room.

"I prefer a neck as well. Damon wanted me to only drink from the bag. Don't know why. I have never even killed someone." I said and crossed my arms.

"Never?"

"It was close, but never have I ever killed someone." He gave me a small look of wonder before smiling.

"Then I will go and find someone for you to feed on. I'd take you out but I would rather not let Damon find us by accident. He is roaming around the compound and waiting to see someone to compel him inside." He said and I sighed and looked down.

"Damon will do as asked, hopefully. And when he gives your niece back I will be on my way again. Hopefully he lets me."

"Let's you?" Elijah asked and I told him again, in a little more detail about what he had done. How he kept me in the locked room and made sure I didn't leave. Not until he let his stupid, yet good friend let me out. "Well, Hope is a little more than just my niece, she is my brothers sanity. If she comes back he goes good, and that is two good things. For the second I am paying back with a offer. If you want, you can stay here, find a job, rack up money." He said and I smiled.

"That would be wonderful." I conceded and looked around when I heard a chuckle.

"Look who is up." I knew Klaus' voice anywhere but with him was Freya another woman with him.

"So this is the woman Damon fathered?" The other one asked coming closer and tilting her head. Her blonde hair fell over her shoulder and I noticed a few things her and Klaus have that Elijah doesn't.

"He adopted me, not fathered." I corrected and looked her over.

"I'm Rebekah." She said and held out her hand and I looked over her before shaking her hand.

"I'm Freya, we didn't get a chance to be introduced." She said and held out her hand as well and I looked at her again.

"Which one of you shot me with the vervain again?" I asked and she laughed.

"The most untrusting one of us all." She said and I saw Klaus hold up his hand.

"Guilty." He said and moved forward. I stayed where I was and he ended up smiling as he got closer. "Brave." He muttered and looked at Elijah. "We already compelled a couple people down stairs, very tasty." He said and I raised an eye brow. I wouldn't describe humans as tasty. Sure blood tasted good but none ever tasted better than another.

"Well, why don't you lead the way." Elijah said moving towards me and Klaus turned and mouthed something to Freya and Rebekah that had them smiling wide and I waited until I was the last one out, not putting my back to anyone again. I followed them downstairs and noticed the bleeding women dancing with each other, half naked with another man watching them from the chair. "Kol, make them stop dancing." Elijah ordered the man and he looked over from the girls, he looked haggard.

"It's the only entertainment I get now that Davina and I are on the outs, who is the hot one behind you brother?" Kol asked standing up and moved towards me. I stepped back from him and gave him a hard stare when he seemed to pout. "She doesn't like me."

"You look drunk, smell horrid, I am surprised she only took one step back." I smiled and looked towards her before seeing Elijah move in front of him and I heard Klaus bite into a woman and I forgot about the others around me and zeroed in on him biting and sucking. My mouth watered, my throat turned dry and my stomach hallowed out.

"Come have a taste love." Klaus told me holding out the girls wrist and moving behind her. I walked closer after looking at the other vampires in the room. I took the wrist and moved it closer to my face before letting my fangs enter her body, disrupting the blood flow and letting it enter my mouth, I gulped it down and pulled away when her heart rate was slowing by a fraction. I licked my lips and gathered the taste in my mouth before swallowing it all over again.

"Elijah's turn." Rebekah sang out and I backed away. "By the way girlie, how about we get you showered and in new clothes." She told me and waved her hand out and waited for me to take it and she linked arms with me. "I think I have the perfect dress and jacket combo for you. Do you get chilly easily?"

"No. Is it supposed to be colder here than anywhere else?" I asked and she laughed. She said she had a lot of things in her old wardrobe and that while I showered she would look for the one she wanted to see on me. I felt like a doll.

Taking a hot shower and shampooing with a peach smelling liquid. The bar of soap smelled of lavender and oats. I tied my hair up and grabbed the large towel that smelled like bleach and wrapped it tightly around myself. I remember the first time I had a cleaning session by myself. I was just adopted by Damon.

 **I looked around the big house, holding Mr. Salvatore's hand as he brought me home for the first time. It had been raining outside and I got a little buddy so as while a maid helped me with my shoes and socks Damon waited and ordered someone else to get me a bath ready.**

 **I walked into the rest of the home barefoot and cold. I asked him who I would be bathing with and he lifted me. His eyes happy and his cheeks pulled back to reveal his dimples.**

 **I got to pour so much soap I was in a bath full of bubbles. Damon had taken to watch me for just a bit and then led me around the house. I was in a small robe and he was carrying me around like I was a sack of flour. He showed me his study, his library, his kitchens. He introduced me to all of his staff. He told me about all the fun we were going to have the next day, and he asked me about my birthday, if I wanted anything before bed time.**

 **He was so attentive. He gave me 10 stuffed animals the next day and basically let me know that if I wanted to do something he would help me. Always be by my side. Always be my father.**

I walked towards the other end of the room and entered the same one as Rebekah. I saw at least 15 dresses on the bed, a couple hanging from the end of it and I smiled. It reminded me of my birthdays and how Damon would have the maids wash them all and the morning of I would get to see all of the ones that still fit me mixed in with the new ones.

"You should pick one." Rebekah said and I noticed her leaning back staring at the bed. "I can't choose. You're skin tone, mixed with your hair color would give you endless possibilities." She said and I touched my brown ends and looked towards the dresses. Some looked short and others looked too out there with the color pops but I saw one, and it was actually like a body suit. "Rompers would work with your legs." She added coming closer noticing how I paused on that one and walked closer.

"I'll just go slip it on." I said taking it from her outstretched hand. I looked over the fabric of forget-me-nots and vines all the way around until the collar had a white undertone and it had thin straps. I loved the little fringe on the legs despite hoping it wasn't itchy. I put it on and walked back out to look for a reaction and I heard Rebekah whisper a 'god I'm good' before smiling at me. "I like this." I told her and looked at the bed again.

"I used to wear things like that... but then I realized that it's a little constricting when taking care of a baby." She said and moved to sit down.

"Hope?" I asked wondering if she adopted a baby or something.

"Yes, years ago when she was just born I had to go on the run with her from others. I was the only one that my brother trusted besides Elijah and he needed to stay here because if he was missing then those who wish to hurt Nik would follow Elijah. Whereas I was already away from my brothers and was the obvious choice." She explained and I nodded.

"Well, how much did this cost?" I asked gesturing to the romper as she called it.

"Free. I like to be up the high fashion, and don't get me wrong, I have the money to buy things but little things like this are just easy to compel for myself." She said and shrugged getting up. I never thought of that.

"Do you know where I could get a job?" I asked and she laughed.

"Darling, I don't work... but I am sure I know someone who would gladly give you a job." She said and I nodded happily. "Let's just make sure that you are going to stick around for a little while." She said and nodded towards the balcony.

We walked out and I noticed how her brothers were across from us on another ledge and when I heard heels coming my way I turned and saw Freya walking into the room. She sighed when she saw the bed full of clothes but didn't say anything as she joined us. The people downstairs looked like they were having fun and I wanted to have fun like that one day.


	10. Chapter 10

It was time for the trade. Klaus was ready, Elijah was with his wife, I think that is what she is, Hayley, Rebekah was with Kol and Freya and I was sitting in the corner waiting for instructions.

"Niklaus, please, calm down." I heard Elijah as he came down the stairs at a quick pace.

"Calm down? You ask me to calm down while I wait to see my daughter again? I spent 5 years in agony, those years where I not only saved your life but Kol and Rebekah and Freya's lives. I missed her grow up. I had to imagine her happy to get through it and right now she is not happy. She is scared and away from all she knows!" Klaus shouted gaining on his brother and I gulped.

"Let's not fight boys, let's just get moving." Freya announced and looked at all of us. "Who is taking Annie?" She asked and I stood up and waited.

"I will. Damon should be scared at what I might do." I tilted my head at Klaus as he waved me forward. I walked closer not caring about what he wanted.

"Where are we going?" Kol asked and I heard a sigh and then Klaus and I were moving. I focused around when we stopped and I felt Elijah, Hayley, and Freya just behind us and then Rebekah and Kol showed up. "Thanks for waiting a half a second." I heard him mumble and I rolled my eyes and looked around at the old warehouse.

"Call out." Klaus ordered and I looked from him to the building.

"Scared?" I asked and he gave me a curious look before shrugging. "Damon!" I shouted and had my voice break at the end and I gulped and looked towards Klaus.

"Let her arm go." I looked up to see Damon on the roof, a girl by his side.

"Damon!" I shouted and gave him a worried look and then to the girl who looked to be asleep.

"Vervain works on her too. Asleep like the little child that she is. Now, let go of Annie's arm." He shouted out and I ground my teeth together. Klaus unhanded my arm and backed away slowly.

"Damon... don't do anything stupid." I heard Elijah call out and I heard him laugh.

"You did something stupid when you messed with my daughter." Damon shouted back and stated to move the girl as if to wake her up.

"Damon, they let me go, not let her go." I called out moving closer and looking up at him.

"Let her go?" He asked and looked at the girl.

"Yeah." I nodded and he smirked as he looked at the family behind me.

"Okay." I saw her fall and I let my mouth drop open as I used my speed to catch her. I cradled her close and set her down as Klaus and Hayley came closer. I looked up and no longer saw Damon.

"Where did he go?" I whispered looking around and worried he would try to take me.

"Hope... wake up." I heard Hayley and I looked down at the girl who was beginning to stir and I backed away.

"Now..." I heard Stefan's voice as I felt a hand on my neck and I retaliated immediately. I elbowed him low and spun around and started hitting him and then he hit me back. Hard. I was sent to my back and I rolled until I was on my knees and he came closer. Before I could blink Rebekah was in front of me and grabbing him by the neck.

"Annie!" I heard Damon and looked to see him at the front of the building he had dropped Hope from and I saw Klaus speed to him and grab him by the neck.

"How about we all head home... I think I have a place for these two." I heard Klaus say and I looked towards his daughter who was crying in her moms arms. She looked so safe.

"Niklaus... Hope will not want to see them when she is home." Elijah stepped forward and I looked at the brothers before sniffing blood. Human. I looked around, feeling my stomach hallow. Elijah continued to talk Klaus down from taking them and I went on my hunt. My mouth was ready, my fangs sharp and my stomach hungry.

I found the little man, running away. He saw what happened in the small open space. He couldn't get away. I sped until was in front of him and grabbed him by the neck. His hand was bleeding, a small hole from a rusty nail. I licked my lips and slammed him against the wall. I compelled him not to scream and moved to drink.

I was draining him, and I finally realized what Klaus meant. He tasted so good. Better than before. I bit harder and increased the blood flow until there was nothing left in his body. I took a breath and stepped back before feeling pain in my stomach. Then my back. Then my arms.

I cried out and fell slowly to the ground. Gripping the cardboard boxes, then the dumpster. I felt someone behind me and a hand on my back and I turned trying to warn them away from hurting me and I saw Rebekah go wide eyed before she shouted something. It hurt my ears and I covered them before whimpering at the pain my knees and legs from being on the ground. I turned to my side and fell, I screamed out again and grabbed my arm.

The pain was everywhere, and then... I was asleep. Dreaming about running through the woods. Dreaming about being free and happy. Dreaming, picturing my mother, my real father. In a small house. Near a place with flowers and a garden, with horses and cows and then there was nothing. It was time to wake up.

I opened my eyes and saw a familiar ceiling. I looked around but didn't feel any more pain. Not like a vervain shot anyways. I felt sore. I looked to my left to see Damon standing stock still, my right had Stefan looking at me. Once we made eye contact he got up and went down stairs. I sat up and looked around. I was still in the same romper as yesterday and I got up to get in Damons face. I slapped him.

Hard.

His face turned to the side and went right back. I punched his chest, his stomach and just when I was about to kick him in between his legs I felt someone behind me. I turned and noticed Klaus watching me with a small smile. Like he was amused.

"Is your daughter okay?"

"Hope is with her mother. For now." He said and I nodded. "You... are remarkable." He said coming closer and I gave him a confused look and he laughed. "Do you know what happened last night?" He asked and I shook my head before remembering that guy.

"I killed someone." I whispered and he nodded. I moved to go sit back down and he moved and told Damon to go downstairs and stay there.

"You triggered your curse. Much like I did when I was turned. Though you didn't kill quite as fast as I did. What held you back from killing before yesterday?"

"I just never did. Yesterday, I smelled him. He was bleeding. He hurt his hand and I tracked him. He saw us, what we did and he couldn't get away. He would tell." I said and covered my face thinking back. "I killed him and then I was in pain."

"Yes, you triggered your werewolf curse. You're a hybrid now." Klaus told me and I looked from him to the room and then the balcony.

"How?"

"Your mother or father must have been a wolf. And now you are." He said and came to sit down near the bed.

"I never knew-"

"Yeah, being an orphan, you wouldn't." He said and I looked away from him, angered by that tone and I sneered at him.

"You knew your mother and you didn't know, correct? So maybe you shouldn't be one to judge." I snapped and got up. I cracked my neck and moved my shoulder and moved to walk out of the room when a little one came running towards me. I stopped and she smiled at me.

"You're the one who saved me right? Mommy said that you had to sleep. But now that you're awake I can hug you and thank you." She said and I gave her a small smile.

"No need for thanks Hope. That man was wrong for taking you away from your family." I said and she moved to hug me tightly anyways.

"Hope." I heard Klaus just behind me and I turned so she would walk past me.

"Yes?" She asked blinking up at her dad.

"Go get Uncle Elijah." Klaus ordered and I looked from him to his daughter. "You saved her... and as a father that means something. So, we are going to help you find your pack." He said and I gave him a small look.

"I know family is a big thing around here, and though at one point I might have wanted to know, maybe even being into seeing what I can find... I would rather not. The family that chose me hates me, or would rather keep me locked away, so that isn't much of a plus. And my biological one gave me up over a 100 years ago. Why would the living ones want me now?" I asked and Klaus looked my face over and I waited.

"You need a drink." He said and I gave him a curious look and turned to keep walking.

"Annie, you're awake." I heard Elijah as I went down the stairs.

"And leaving. Glad I could help, Hope, you're a good kid... and now I just need to get away." I said backing away as I got to the end.

"But you can't leave yet! Mom said she had a gift for you-"

"I don't need a gift. Sorry kid, but I already did my part. I helped save you and now I have to get on the road." I gulped when I felt a lot of eyes on me as I backed out, and when I was outside I looked both ways before heading out of the quarter.

I wasn't a foot outside when I felt my neck being broken. I woke up chained and in a dark room. I looked around and tugged at my restraints before hearing someone coming. "You left Damon and Stefan with Klaus?" I heard Caroline before I saw her and I laughed.

"They messed with the Original family. They took a kid. They deserve what they get." I said and pulled on the manacles again as hard as I can. The chain broke on my right side and I turned to pull the left. Once that broke I looked back at her.

"He is your dad." She said looking at me and I sighed.

"And that innocent little girl has a dad. Granted it is Klaus. She has a mom. She has aunts and uncles. She deserves to be with them. Damon took her for what reason?" I asked getting closer to her and she looked away before focusing on me.

"Damon said he needed the witch to do a spell. For you." She said coming closer and I glared at her.

"What about me?" I asked and she looked down before looking around and then to me again.

"He said that he had a witch put a spell on you when you were 14, because he knew you were a wolf. He had a witch detain your anger, your jealousy, basically anything that might trigger your curse. He said that it was good for 100 years. And he is sure that it was wearing off." She said and I just watched her back away.

"He knew I was a wolf?" I asked and she gulped and nodded. I walked past her and out of the little place they found to keep me in before speeding back to the quarter. I got to the house, looking around for someone before seeing Rebekah. "Where is Damon?" I asked and she moved closer to me staring at the manacles.

"Nik is with him and Stefan. Who locked you up?" She asked and grabbed the side of one and ripped it open and let it hit the floor before helping with the other one.

"Caroline. I need to speak to Damon." I said and she gave me a worried look before waving me along for me to follow. We got closer and I heard pained laughter before a groan.

"Nik, he might need to be conscious." I nodded to Rebekah as I got closer.

"I thought we were leaving." Klaus said looking down at me, he didn't look as mean as I had seen him when dealing with Damon before.

"That was before I found out why Damon took Hope."

"You know and he won't even murmur it to me." He said and I titled my head.

"You should have talked to Caroline." I said and patted his shoulder before forcing him out of my way. I got closer to Damon and grabbed his chin making him look at me. "You knew I was a wolf." I stated and he blinked and took a strangled breath before nodding. "You had a witch bind most of my emotions so I would never trigger it while I was alive."

"Had to protect myself, and you." He groaned out and I felt hurt, and angry and I gripped his job tighter.

"You had that witch bind me." I felt the tears as I glared at him. "You could have found my real family."

"They're dead. They were slaughtered. I did find them." Damon muttered and I felt my emotions rise to a new height and I gripped his jaw and tugged until it cracked.

"Well now he won't be talking no matter how much I torture him." I heard Klaus behind me and I turned to him.

"He will heal." I stated and he grabbed my arm when I tried to walk back out.

"You said he had a witch bind your emotions." He said and I nodded and looked at Damon and then to him. "Did that break when you turned into a vampire?"

I thought about it. I wasn't angry, or sad when I was alone. I was just lonely and full of hope that Damon would come back. It wasn't until recently that I started to get angry and let my emotions rule over me. "No." I whispered and looked him in the eye. "That's why I was okay with being alone for so many years. I didn't feel things." I whispered and put a hand over my mouth and thought more about how I didn't feel anything but hunger.


	11. Chapter 11

I paced while Klaus did what he wanted to Stefan. He didn't hurt him as much as I thought he would, afterall Damon was the one who took Hope. I walked with him towards the stairs when he chained them together and I followed behind.

"You still need that drink." Klaus said and I just followed him again. He got to a room with some antiques. A few paintings, bottles of liquor and as he poured me a drink I went to sit down. I crossed my legs and looked at my romper and picked at the dried blood. "I'm sure you can get a new outfit from my sister if you asked nicely." He told me as he came to sit down near me.

"I'm sure." I said and took a sip letting the taste hit my tongue before going down. It burned slightly but it wasn't anything new. I looked at him and waited for something.

"So you know what being a hybrid entails? Eating real food by choice, still needing to drink blood." He said and that was when I remembered the phrase he said.

"Yesterday... you said that the girls blood was delicious. I never really could taste any difference in blood until last night... that man tasted so good and it was something new." I said and the thought had my veins emerging and Klaus leaned forward.

"What did it taste like?" He asked and I thought back to it.

"Like the best candy. I used to love taffy when I was human. It was sweet and it was savory, and it was the best thing I have ever felt. It was like heaven." I whispered and I felt hungry again. I took deep breaths as Klaus smirked at me and stood up.

"Shall we go and get something to eat again?" He asked and I stood up happily. Ready to get something that tasty again. I walked with him around the Quarter with Klaus, he was telling me how the vampires of the Quarter were forbidden from eating the locals, and that we just had to make sure they were from out of town. I compelled a couple men at the bar until I found a girl who only moved here last week. She was here for a month but lived in Washington. Since Klaus and I were basically hunting together he was who I looked to, to see if that counted as a tourist.

"Well, let's buy you another drink and go explore the city." Klaus announced and waved the bartender over. The woman agreed at just the sight of him and gave me a smirk before touching his chest and making advances. I compelled the guy behind the bar to give us free drinks.

"So, who is the girl? A hang on?" The woman asked as we got outside. Klaus and I led her out the back way.

"No, not a hang on. She's my companion for the night. Getting dinner and all that." He said and I smiled getting closer.

"Dinner? How did you end up at a bar if you just went for dinner." She asked and giggled when Klaus reached out to touch her cheek making her look in his eyes. He compelled her not to scream and to act like nothing was happening.

He started feeding first and I joined in taking her wrist as my choice rather than the neck. I felt the blood rushing in, the taste swirling around, giving off euphoria and a tang that just made it taste like candy. An addictive kind that I loved. I felt her draining and I rushed for more of the blood before feeling Klaus pulling the wrist away from me. I gave him a look before noticing the blood all over his chin and I grabbed his face and used my thumb to wipe it off and I sucked my thumb and hummed at the final taste. I felt Klaus grab my cheek before pulling me up and slamming his lips onto mine.

I licked over his lips tasting the blood again and humming as he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me up. I wrapped my arm around his neck and my other hand went to his side and over his heart so I could feel it speeding up. He pulled away and turned towards our meal and made her forget this happened, right after giving her a bit of blood to help heal her and then he turned back to me and gave me a small smile.

"Another?" I asked and he grabbed my hand before tugging me out of the ally and towards the city.

We feasted in 4 more people before he dragged me to a hotel and went to the top floor. He was holding me tight as we walked through the building. No one seemed to care that we had blood here and there on our clothes, his face was clean of it and I was sure my lips retained some of the darkness but it went completely unnoticed.

He brought me into the penthouse and the scent of death was around I looked around for a corpse or something before feeling Klaus walking just behind me. "Guess this is someone elses room." I said turning to face him and leaning back against the wall.

"Used to be an old friend of mine. He passed along." He said and came closer.

"And why did you bring me here and not back to the compound?" I asked tilting my head.

"Less eyes around." He muttered and got even closer and I took a step to the side.

"Am I to be your dirty little secret?" I asked and giggled before shaking my head. "As horrible as Damon was as a father, and still is, he warned me from being a secret for men. I liked the kissing and the feeding but I'll be blunt. I am a virgin Klaus, and I won't lose it being a secret." I said and looked his face over. There wasn't a bit of shock in my reveal and as I walked past him I bumped his shoulder and was in a vision.

 _I was in one of my favorite dresses. Gliding down the hallway. The feeling of being late was coursing through me. I was in my old home, rushing and picking up my skirts. I got to the stairs and trotted down seeing Klaus there. He was in the same kind of clothes and held his hand out for me. I took it and he gripped it and pulled me down and into his arms spinning me. He set me down and brushed my hair away from my face before kissing me again._

I opened my eyes seeing Klaus pulling away and I stepped back again and shook my head. "You might not get no as an answer a lot Niklaus, but that is my answer." I said pushing his shoulder this time and heading out.

I got to the elevator when I made sure the doors closed before Klaus ever made it to the elevator. I got to the ground floor and went looking for another place I could stay. I compelled my way into a room. I compelled real room service. I compelled myself clothes the next day and made my way back to the compound ready to apologize to Rebekah for messing up, yet, another outfit.

I walked in wearing a green dress that went down to my mid thigh. It had thick straps and showed off my chest. I had black flats on that wrapped around ankles. I had a black sweater around the bloody clothes. "Well hello." I heard Kol and looked up to see him looking down at me.

"Where is your sister?" I asked stopping where I was.

"She's here somewhere... can I help you with anything?" He asked moving down the stairs and I watched him closely.

"Get the blood out of her clothes?" I asked holding them up for him to look at.

"Easy... throw them out." He said trying to get them from me.

"They are not yours to throw out. After all your years you haven't thought of finding ways to get the blood out of clothes?" I asked and he sighed. I got to the end of the stairs when Rebekah called out my name. I got to the top and looked into her room before seeing her holding dresses up. Very expensive dresses.

"When Klaus came home he was in a tiff, bloody and I wasn't sure you were still alive." She said turning to me with an almost knowing smile. "He promised you were. I just needed to see you to believe it." She said before noting her clothes in my hand. "Had a good meal?" She laughed.

"Your brother and I had quite of few people yesterday. Got a little messy." I said and winced. "Kol said I should throw them out but I wouldn't do that without your permission." I said and she smiled.

"These are slightly cheap, slightly available everywhere so it doesn't matter." She said and took them before tossing them towards a trashcan. "Now I like what you have on." She said eyeing me and then smiling. "Dressing up for anyone?"

"Uh, no. Liked the color, shoes are nice. Have a sweater if it gets cold." I said and moved to put it on.

"Well I am sure Damon will want to talk to you. He was calling out for you last night but since you didn't come home we just let him sleep." She said and I smiled and turned only to see Klaus coming out of another room.

"Nice of you to turn back up." He commented and I shrugged.

"I feel like there is already a lot of people here, don't want to put anyone out or make anyone uncomfortable." I stated and moved to go downstairs where Damon was yesterday. He was awake and looking up when I walked in and I just looked at him.

"I see you're okay."

"I see you're still an asshole." I challenged and walked towards him a bit but not too close.

"You killed someone didn't you?" He asked and I nodded. "Anger?" He asked and I shook my head.

"He was bleeding. You knew I couldn't resist an already bleeding person and I couldn't stop." I said and crossed my arms. "Where am I from?"

"Smokey Hills." He sighed out and turned to actually look at me. "Your parents were fleeing from something. Both had triggered their curse and knew that while they ran they couldn't keep you safe. It was near a full moon when you were left at that orphanage and you had a note that said they would be back in a weeks time. But they never came back." He said and shifted a bit.

"They were planning on coming back?" I asked and he nodded. "How did you find them?" I asked and he made a face like he really didn't want to tell me and when he didn't start to speak I reacted and brought my foot up to slam down on his knee. It broke and he was screaming out my name. "How did you find them?" I asked again.

"I tracked the local, or the closest pack, asked about a girl that looked like you, age, things like that. They told me that witches were driving them apart. But the actual pack was disrupted or whatever when the king and queen died. You were their daughter. They had been searching for you. They wanted to trigger your curse... you were only 13 when I found them." He panted out and moved to push his leg back into place since it wasn't that bad. "I couldn't let them do that to you." He whispered and shook his head.

"Damon, stop talking." I heard Stefan warn and I took deep breaths looking at him. I walked up to him, the fear I once felt being close to him gone and now I was just filled with rage. I grabbed a stick from the ground, already covered in his blood and stabbed it into his stomach. "You're feeling angry at me now instead of the fear because the curse, not because you-"

"I am feeling it all now because my emotions are all free! Not because I am now a werewolf. You're lucky that I didn't trigger it before seeing you again. You would have had your heart in a trophy box, your body ash and in a small urn for your brother. Now I am considering putting you side by side until I can kick you off of something very tall." I said and took the stick out before shoving it a little higher.

"Annie, stop... please. You haven't had much experience with anger... and taking it out on people-"

"Whose fault is that Damon? How come I can't control my anger? And I am not taking it out on people. I am taking it out on my killer. My sire... right Stefan? Oh, wait, you don't remember. What was it that you said?" I asked pulling out the stick and letting it drip his blood and I watched him heal as he kept his mouth shut. "It's like it never happened because you were a Ripper. Right?" I said and plunged it back in making him groan loudly. "So because my anger is so passionate right now I won't be held responsible if you just die... and die and die." I added and started to punch through organs before leaving it in his liver.

"I was wrong-" He coughed and blood came out in a string.

"I think that was already proven." I said and grabbed his chin and brought it close so we were looking eye to eye.

"I'm sorry." He said and I feigned relief before glaring at him again.

"I'm not." I said and jerked his head around until it was broken and I went back towards Damon. "What were you saying about the wolf pack?"

He looked from Stefan to me and looked utterly defeated. "They wanted you to trigger your curse, at 13. They were going to make me take them to you, and so... I killed them. All of them." He declared and met my eye. Waiting for something. For me to react.

"Women and children or do you evolve over time to cradle snatching?" I asked and he sighed and groaned.

"I only took that kid because I needed you to be bind all over again!" He shouted his explanation and I rolled my eyes.

"That wasn't the answer to my question. Women and children?"

"No. Just the men. The women were mostly human, none triggered and the kids were innocent." He said and I glared.

"Kids are innocent Damon. Klaus' daughter is innocent. I was innocent. Before you I would have been happy making my way as a maid. Finding a good hardworking husband and having kids who would be loved and cherished like normal people do. And then you took me in. Made me with for a completely different life. A one filled with thousands of years to find and make a bigger family. For an eternity of love most people only get once in a life time. And just when things were getting okay and we were making plans everything about my wishes leave. I wanted that time to think about what I wanted."

"I would have never turned you." He told me shaking his head and I bent down.

"I wasn't even sure I wanted you to. I would have been happy to see the world. To see things and then come home and think about the chance of a family." I said and shook my head. The tears were gliding across my water line and towards the corner and I hated that they were going to fall. "And then I find out you were lying to me my whole life. Betraying me. Keeping everything important to me away." I said and shook my head. "You were supposed to be my father, my best friend... and I can't even stand to hear your pathetic excuses." I said and shook my head as I got back up.

I walked away and towards the doors before seeing Klaus lounging about just outside. He might have heard everything and I didn't care.

"I am letting them go." He told me when I passed him.

"I'll make sure they don't try to take me back to Mystic Falls." I said and he stated to follow me.

"I think you should come with me." He said and I looked at him again.

"Why?"

"You are angry. I have a way for you to vent." He let me know before using his finger to guide my chin up and showed me a car. "Get in."

"I hate cars." I mumbled as I walked towards it. He sent me a smirk and then got in himself. Somehow I knew I wouldn't like his driving.

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	12. Chapter 12

I had to admit, Klaus drove safer than Damon ever did, but his parking could use some work. I would have hit the front if I hadn't been wearing the belt across my chest. I gave him a glare when he sniggered and pushed the door open before and went around the smelly swamp unhappy. "What are we doing here?" I asked crossing my arms when the shoes I was wearing slid in mud and I had to kick my foot until it was mostly off.

"You're going to shift and then I am... and then we are going for a run." He said and I looked over at him to see if he was serious.

"Isn't the best thing about being a hybrid about not being forced to shift every full moon?" I asked tilting my head and he just kept smiling and walking into the woods.

"It isn't a burden to be a hybrid. Shifting and running after half of your being is locked away. I had my emotions locked away just as you did. My mother gave me a pendant that was to keep me from ever triggering my curse. My father cut the pendant from my neck once, and I beat him. For the first time. And then my pride washed over and he stabbed me. After I was turned I killed, and I was in pain like you were the other night. I didn't know what was happening to me."

"Your father made your mother bind your other half." I nodded knowing the story already. It was one of the many things Damon elaborated on. "But you have been freed. And you waited your entire life to be what you are. I never even knew." I said and waited to see him react to that. He just nodded and started to take off his jacket and I titled my head when he stared to unbutton his shirt too. "What are you doing?"

"I don't have spare clothes, and I don't want to drive home naked." He said and turned and focused on the forest as he laughed. "I won't shift until you do." Klaus said and I took a deep breath.

"Why couldn't I just do this with Hayley?" I asked knowing she was a hybrid as well.

"She is with our daughter." He said and I just waited until I heard him coming closer. "Now, I don't have extra clothes, like I said so you might want to start getting yours off. I will be a complete gentleman." I turned and saw the smirk and the glint in his eye that made me not believe him. He only had his shirt off. And as my eyes wandered his smirk only got bigger.

"Tell me how to shift, then I will undress when you turn away." I said and crossed my arms again and tried to keep my eyes on his face. Truth be told he was the first man I saw shirtless, not counting Damon. And despite what I had mentioned before about wanting a gentleman, Niklaus was drawing me in with his wicked glint, and his slight helpfulness.

He eventually explained that I needed to call the wolf forward, to will it and imagine it and let it take over my body and when I felt it I was scared I would actually ruin my clothes so I asked him to stop and that I needed to undress before he continued. I took off the sweater and the flats before waiting for him to turn around. "Nothing I have never seen before."

"Well you haven't seen anything of mine yet, so there inlies my issue with watching." I said and he smirked and turned his back to me. I looked at the back side of him now and focused on getting the zipper down and then asking him to start over, with his back turned.

My bones broke, it was painful. Klaus eventually turned around anyways and tried to make me relax and just let it happen and then I was a wolf. I felt the relief of pain and I looked around to see Klaus smiling at my wolf, and I moved to get up, using my front legs first before turning when he started to undo his pants. He laughed again and I just waited until I heard other panting. He seemed to hold in the pain of transforming and I was looking him over.

He let his tongue roll out of his mouth as he panted and then took off in a direction. We ran for three and a half hours before we had made a full circle and found out clothes. He was beside me and I moved to my clothes and gave him a look. He shifted and I whined and laid down and covered my eyes. He was now the first man I ever saw naked.

He pulled on his pants and I heard his shoes being tied and I looked up and was thankful he was only shirtless. I blinked at him and he smiled. He explained how to shift back and I thumped my tail watching him and waiting for him to turn and he sighed before turning and I was human and pulling up my dress quickly. "Can we face each other now?" He asked before just turning around anyways.

"Now what are you planning on doing with me?" I asked tugging on my sweater and he moved closer as he buttoned his shirt.

"What are you offering?" He asked and I rolled my eyes.

"I would rather learn how to drive than do what you want. I already told you. I am no ones secret." I shook my head and leaned down to fix my flats.

"Well, that can be arranged as well. Let's get back to the car." He said picking up his jacket and holding out his keys.

"No... I didn't conform like other vampires did." I said and backed away.

"Annie... you either take the keys or you and I are going to stay here until you are ready to learn." He said and I nibbled my lip and thought about how there was no food out here. He moved the keys back and forth and I sighed and held out my hand.

He placed them in, locking his hand around mine and pulling me closer. "What?"

"You might not want to be my secret Annie, but you feel what I feel. The pull. Attraction." He said and leaned closer and I gulped. "Truth is, with all of my enemies, any one I love has to either be very protected, or a secret so they don't get hurt." He whispered against my lips before adding more pressure and wrapping his other arm around my waist and leaning me back just slightly.

I moved my hand from his and moved it towards his cheek along with my other hand and ran them into his hair and around to the back of his head to pull him even closer. He pulled back after a moment and I took an inhale. "You really want me to drive your car?" I asked and he smiled.

"You can't possibly wreck it. Not out here." He said and looked around.

"There are a lot of trees." I muttered and he smiled and leaned in. "And I refused when the others wanted me to try." I whispered trying to find that part of me that was scared of hurting someone.

"Were there people around?" He asked and I nodded. "Maybe that fear was part of the spell placed upon you love. Scared of hurting, or possibly killing someone made you never want to do it." He whispered the excuse and I thought it over. "Are you still scared to try driving?"

"Not like I was before. Before I was so scared that I tried to run." I said and pulled back and I started to reassess my feelings for people and things that I tried and didn't try. "I didn't even go to the high school Damon wanted me to because I didn't want to. It was too full of people." I said and shook my head.

"Let's not dwell on what used to be, and lets try out driving." He said and took my hand again and putting the keys inside. He wrapped one arm around mine and pulled me along before his car came into view again. I looked at the keys and hit the lock button that looked unlocked. I got to the driver side as he got in on the other and I looked at the wheel and then at him.

"Now what?"

He asked about the feet and pedals and I had to move the seat forward, and then the back and finally all the mirrors. I put the key in, turned it for too long and he told me it didn't take long and that I could over-flood the engine. He then told me step on the horizontal pedal, which was the brake. The other was the gas.

I went down the road at a 15 steady and he told me to keep the wheel straight and the car would stay straight. I didn't have to turn it too much to go around a curve. And then we got to the main road and he encouraged me to get on it. There weren't a lot of cars, and he started to tell me about how to merge and use my blinkers and things so we never got pulled over because it was a tedious thing to wait.

We got around more people, and I was feeling more comfortable cruising into a stop, and driving in general. The fear was gone, a sort of happiness in the fact that I get to do this, learn this, was in it's place. When we got to the street he had parked on before I didn't know how to back into the parking space so Klaus took over. I knew for sure I would have hit one of the cars, or scraped the back side of one.

While I was waiting on the sidewalk I got the whiff of a bit of blood and was fidgeting as Klaus finished up. He made eye contact with me and seemed to know something was off and got out of the car. He smelled what I did when he got closer and I started to panic. I felt the veins emerge and I put my head down before willing myself for control. I felt him grab me and then we were moving, towards the compound.

The farther away we got the more control I had and I started to breath easier. We got inside and I heard someone say his name, then mine, and then Damon's name. I walked forward and noticed Hope was sitting and painting and when she saw Klaus she got up happily and ran to him.

"What are you painting little wolf?" He asked and I looked around before spotting Hayley coming out to the terrace and I looked at her and how she was watching Klaus and Hope before her eyes fell on me.

"Annie." She called and I waited. "I think... I am certain that I know where your family came from." She said and I moved to go upstairs. I met her at the top of the stairs and she was giving me this look like she was ready to cry.

"Are you okay?" I asked and touched her shoulder and she nodded. "How could you know where my family is from?"

"When I was pregnant I came across a book, it had all of my families history and things like that and other packs history and how it intertwined." She explained and I nodded and waited. "Come and see."

I walked with her into a room and saw a big book laid out. She started telling me about who the 'royal' families were, about how there were only 7. I had to be one of the seven and then she went deep into her family history.

Elijah, Freya and Klaus came in for the big reveal.

"My mother... was your older brothers granddaughter. You were my moms Great Aunt. Her name was Annabeth." She told me and I flinched at the name. I had never liked that name. For as long as I could remember people told me I wasn't good enough for such a name. Which is why I always told people that I was named Annie. And then after years... Annabeth wasn't brought up. Damon didn't even know, I don't think.

"You're sure that is her?" Klaus asked and I just nodded.

"When I was at the Orphanage... the woman who ran it told me that it wasn't a good name for someone like me. So she and I shortened it. I never knew why she gave me that name if she would never approve of it. But it makes sense. If that was a name my parents left me with it was the name she called me by." I said and looked at Hayley before Freya and then the papers again. "Is there a way that we can be absolutely sure?" I asked and Freya nodded.


	13. Chapter 13

I noticed how Klaus and his siblings looked at me differently after Freya proved it with her spell. My blood and Hayley's met confirming we were blood relatives. She had asked me questions about things I didn't know. If I wanted to know them. Things that were a little much after finding out she was my great, great grand niece from a brother that never came looking for me.

Knowing he was older made me want to know why my parents didn't leave me with him, or the person he was left with. Hayley wanted to go on a road trip, with me, to the pack near Smokey Hills. There was still a small one and she had a inkling that we would find out more about him and my family, my parents.

Then she said she was taking Hope with us, which made the rest of the people in the room object and start to dissuade her from thinking it was okay to take a seven year old anywhere near Mystic Falls. Which made me object to my hometown having anything to do with their hometown. I sat down after Hayley wouldn't budge and I had to admit I used to do that when Damon wanted to take me somewhere and I didn't want to go.

I watched them all bicker and shout and then little feet were running, Kol was laughing, and everyone shut up as Hope came running in. She ran to Klaus and tackled his legs. He asked her where she had been and hefted her up into his arms and I watched before looking towards Hayley. "We need to talk." I told her and she nodded and I stood up and that was when Hope saw me.

"You're here again." She said and I nodded.

"Seems this place is a honey trap." I winked and walked out just after Klaus and I's eyes met. I kept walking until we were out of earshot and I turned to her. "I've gone almost a 100 years without needing to know why my family left me. I heard what you went through, and I guess we have a similar family background besides the blood relation, but Hayley... you have what you need. You have Elijah, and Hope, and you even have Klaus. Why do you want to go digging in other family matters?" I asked and she watched me until she just broke out into a small smile.

"I found out about my family. I found out about who I was supposed to be, and that made me much happier with who I am. I am not saying that you should. I am saying you need it just as much as I did. It's like a relief. You need this after what you've discovered." She said and I thought it over. I blinked and looked at her. "Trust me... we both need this. We're family." She said and I just waited until nodding at her.

"You got me to agree to go, and I get that you don't want to leave Hope, but that just means someone else is going to have to come with us." I said and she sighed. "I am going to talk to Damon." I let her know as I turned and went down stairs. He was trying to get free as was Stefan when I walked in and I just sat down and watched him.

"Guessing you're not here to finally help." He said and I shook my head.

"Did you know I had an older brother?" I asked and he looked confused but I couldn't tell if he meant it or had just perfected that look over the years. "Did you know, that he was Hayley's great great grandfather?"

"No." He shook his head before groaning. "You're basically her family."

"I am her family." I stated and looked towards Stefan and then noticed him watching me with a weird look. "Got something to say?"

"You're different." He muttered and I smiled and remembered what else I wanted to tell Damon.

"Did you know that I was scared to learn how to drive because of the spell that was on me? If I had done one wrong move I could have killed someone, therefore triggering my curse, and since the spell was still on me when you had Stefan break my neck that was why I overreacted." I said and leaned forward. "Klaus taught me how to drive today. I drove all the way from the Bayou to here."

"What were you doing in the swamp?" Damon asked and I took another breath.

"I shifted with him. He told me it was a privilege and despite it hurting... it was." I said and smiled. "I don't know how long he plans to keep you down here... but I will be with Hayley going to the small pack in Smokey Hills." I said and stood up. "I guess I should thank you for not killing my brother Damon." I said and kept walking, not actually thanking him.

"So you're going?" I jumped at Klaus' voice and turned to see him leaning against the stairwell to the right.

"Hayley said I needed this. Just like you did about shifting. And shifting helped. A little. I am going to give this a try too." I told him and he narrowed his eyes before coming closer.

"Then guess who else is coming?" He asked and I smiled.

"Rebekah? Great. It could be a girls trip." I heard his growl before I stopped laughing and he had me pinned to the wall as I blinked.

"I said so in the woods Annabeth. We both feel it."

"Don't call me that." I whispered and shook my head. "Like I said earlier I wasn't worthy of that name." I looked down remembering how I used to feel when that woman tore me down. She was like the evil step mother in Cinderella, yet she never had a favorite person in the orphanage. She just put a show on for the parents and the committees that donated.

"You are worthy of such a name. And since you are, I will call you that. And I am crashing this girls vacation." He said lifting my chin and making my face become even with his. He leaned in and pecked my cheek before rubbing his thumb over my lips. "Now, we should go get my sister, so she can help you compel people to get you a wardrobe for this trip."

"A wardrobe? Really?"

"What other things did you get this morning when you were shopping for this." He asked since the answer was nothing I kept my mouth shut. "Right..." He laughed and backed away. "Sister!" He shouted and I waited until I heard Rebekah's footsteps before looking for her. "I think Annabeth needs to get new clothes, and since you are such a-"

"Do not finish that sentence. Annie, let's get shopping. Then we can head out tomorrow, bright and early." She said and smiled wide at the opportunity to shop with someone.

"Toodalou." Klaus winked and I glared as I started to walk with his sister. Rebekah and I got to shopping, her actually making it sort of fun, rather than by myself.

I got a lot more dresses, despite my actual liking of pants. She got me some sweaters and told me about the different kinds of underwear. We got shoes as well and when we got back to the compound I was emotionally tired and my feet hurt and I just wanted to lay down. I didn't even want to go hunting.

Rebekah was going to let me use one of her bags for my clothes and then helped me get the tags off of everything and told me what I should leave here so it wouldn't get ruined and then I got to lay down. I was relaxing when I heard laughter and shouting and then feet pounding around. There was no way I could sleep when I Hope was here, happy and playing with her family.

I started to put things in the closet, focusing on every moment of the fabric and how it was stitched together and I remembered how I used to only have two dresses when I was Hope's age. Before I met Damon... there was no love in my life. No sympathy. No fun.

 **There was nothing more frightening then waking up late in the Orphanage. There were only 5 of us left, and every Sunday was a day we could possibly be adopted. It was the day we got to parade ourselves in our best clothes, in my case I would pretend to pray, and look like angels.**

 **And Saturday we were to clean. We were to mop, dust, sweep, beat the rugs. Anything that could possible be dirty like our mistresses clothes, like the pans and plates we ate off of, we had to clean.** **We didn't celebrate birthdays. We didn't do anything fun. We barely knew how to read.**

 **The day I woke up late, it was the day Damon came to town. Mistress Lenora had found me in bed, shouted, grabbed me by my hair and dragged me about the house. I was to clean it all by myself. And I tried my hardest. I had been hit with the thin mop stick and it broke. So I had to use a scrub brush on my hands and knees. And when I was done washing the floors I had to get clean water for the dishes.**

 **That's when I met him. My hands and knees were red and itchy from the chemicals. My hands hurt but I was determined to finish it so I wouldn't be punished and the others wouldn't have to do it all over.**

 **Damon had come from the left, helping me raise the water from the well. He asked me what I was doing, where my parents were, and when I told him about being an orphan he told me he was one too, now that he was a man, it wasn't as hard. We went to church the next day, and he started to watch me and then he came by the next week on Saturday, when I had woken up on time, and noticed what us kids were doing.**

 **He demanded to talk to Lenora and when he was done, he said things would change.**

Looking back on it, I just knew that Damon had compelled her to change things. I got up thinking about that again. How he changed the lives of the others he left at the orphanage, and still brought me into his home, took me in. I decided to ask him why.

I opened the door and saw Hope near the top of the stairs going down, I heard a 'growl' behind her and saw Kol running after her at human speed. I smiled and moved slower and watched as how he used a bit of speed to catch up to her and lift her up before tossing her up in the air. He caught her and she asked him to do it again and again.

I got down the stairs and went unnoticed as I went down into the basement where Damon was. Stefan was no longer hanging where he had been and I didn't mind but I did look around fully before walking any closer. "You're back again." He smiled and looked attentive before narrowing his eyes. "What is wrong?"

"You compelled Mistress Lenora." I accused and he seemed to think about what I was talking about before nodding. "What did you make her do?"

"I made her believe that she met the love of her life, had his kids, and he died making her promise to take care of the rest of the those brats." He groaned before shifting around. "I convinced her that she took you in because you were her niece." He said and I watched him with a uncertain look. "I compelled her to give you to me and then I compelled that house we lived in to be put in your name."

"Why?"

"The day we met... I was hunting you. Your knees were bleeding and it smelled like heaven. And then I realized you were just a little girl. Someone who shouldn't have been away from home, and on top of that, the closer I got to you the more you smelled of ammonia and that was when I realized what that woman was making you and the other kids do." He said and I blinked as I waited.

"Why did you take me in?"

"My father used to beat me. He burned me with cigars more than I can remember. I took the heat for Stefan. A lot. And I got all the punishment." He said and moved to stand up and I tried to hold on to some of the anger that was surrounding why he made me feel about binding me.

"You remember that little girl that I was?" I asked remembering that Hope was my family. And not only that, she was my age when Damon found me.

"So trusting and small." He nodded.

"Hope is the age I was when you found me. How could you take her and use her as leverage."

"I don't expect you to understand the lengths you would go to save your child! I just got you back! Dammit Annie, and I was going to make sure that you didn't leave me again! Hope is not my daughter! Hope has her family. And her family could have saved you! So yes, I didn't care that I had to use that little girl to make sure that you were bound once again! Yes, I didn't think you would ever find out! Yes, I just wanted you to have a normal vampire life!" He shouted and the veins on his neck started to emerge and I felt a tear roll down my cheek before I felt the anger bubble.

I grabbed his arm and bit down as hard as I could making him cry out and kick at me. I felt the pain in my stomach and I whimpered as I pushed myself up from the wall I had landed in.

"I got you love." I heard Klaus behind me before picking me up. I looked over his shoulder to see Stefan locked back up far away from Damon and I glared at him, and then Damon as he watched Klaus take me out of the room. Once we were close to the top I stopped him and asked him to put me down. I rubbed my side that was now healed from any breaks or fractures.

"He was really going to hurt your daughter for me... I don't understand why he did that." I said shaking my head and moving past him.

"Don't be too hard on him... being a spiteful father myself, I would use whoever and whatever I needed to make sure Hope was safe." He said and I looked down at me.

"Would you use another child?" He didn't answer and I just kept walking up the stairs before going toward the stairs.

"Annie! Mommy and Daddy said that you were family. How? I never knew you before." I heard Hope and I turned to her and smiled.

"You wanna know the long version or the short one?" I asked and she actually looked excited before asking for the long one. I took a seat and she came over and I started to explain that I was a vampire, which meant I lived a long time. Which she knew. And then I told her that I had a brother, once upon a time, and since he wasn't a vampire he had children, and his children had children and one of those children had her mommy. I explained about how the 'great great' worked with the Aunt and how generations works and when she yawned Klaus was swooping in and telling her it was time for bed.

He started to tell her how we were all going on a little trip to learn more about mommies family and things like that and when he laid her down, I stayed in the doorway and listened to how she begged her father to tell her a story.

And so he did. I could tell when he was either making things up for her, or if he was cleaning up his or his families acts. When Hope was finally out for the count he turned and sped to me and pinned me to the door jam. "To answer your question... to see her in that bed... happy and sleeping after my stories of me and my siblings, I would use another child. I would not necessarily throw the other girl off a roof, and I would do everything in my power to keep them both safe." He told me and it actually looked like he hated himself for saying that.

I raised my hand and cupped his cheek. "That makes you better than Damon." I said and rubbed his scratchy cheek and gave a small smile.

"First time someone ever told me that." He whispered and I smiled a little wider.

He leaned in and put his forehead on mine and I moved my other hand up and played with the v of his shirt and gulped. "I will see you in the morning." I said and moved from him and turned towards the room I had been given. I kept walking, not looking back until I got to the door. Klaus was watching me, not entirely happy, and I winked at him and smiled as he didn't look amused one little bit.

I sighed as I turned around and set my mind to thinking about what a long day tomorrow will be.


	14. Chapter 14

"Where are we?" I heard Hope ask when we finally got to my town. I saw it how it was, and how it is now.

"We are where I grew up." I said looking back at her. Klaus was driving, I was beside him, Hayley was in the back and Rebekah and Freya were behind them.

"Look familiar?" Hayley asked and I looked at her now and I turned to see some of the old buildings still up.

"That is where I was given a coming out bash, across the street in the small park is where Stefan snapped my neck. That empty lot is where the Orphanage was." I said and took a breath. "Happy to say I burned that to the ground after everyone was gone." I said and shrugged when I felt everyone's eyes on me. Even Klaus looked incredulous.

"Where did you live with Damon?" Klaus asked and I sighed. I gave him directions to the old house and when we pulled up I was the last one out of the car. "Who owns it?"

"I always through Damon did, but he told me he put it in my name." I said and shrugged. "I guess I do." I said and walked through before hearing curses and then Hope's giggle. "What?" I asked turning to all of them.

"You're a hybrid, still sort of human, you have to invite us in." Rebekah said as Freya just stepped in and stood next to me and Hope.

"Come on in." I said waving to the three outside before turning around.

"You legitimately lived here? In this dark, dusty-"

"I didn't have a daylight ring. So the darkness was necessary." I interrupted and she clamped her mouth shut. "But now that I can be in the sun." I stopped and turned before ripping the curtains and moving to do the same. Hope started to help and when she tugged and tugged and nothing happened she started to pout and her dad, Klaus, started to laugh.

"Your dad likes to make fun of you... let me do it and go find a broom." Hayley said taking it from her and I noticed Freya start to help and then Klaus did as well. The dust was everywhere and opening a window or 5 helped by the time Hope found the broom. She started to sweep, put it in the small dustpan and then toss it out the window. I laughed when I noticed what she was doing and moved to pat out the couch and the pillows.

"Now that I can see it, and see it clean, it's not a bag house." Rebekah approved.

"Too bad there is only 2 beds." I said and smiled when they all turned to look at me with shock. "I mean there are rooms, and bed frames, but no mattresses." I corrected and smiled again.

"Bloody hell, now we have to go into town. And get Hope food. And you other hybrids."

"I do eat too dear sister." Freya said waving her hand in the air to get her sisters attention.

"I knew I was forgetting someone." Rebekah teased and moved to capture her sisters hand and she pulled her up. "Why don't we split up. Freya and I will go food shopping since she is a food eater, Nik and Annie can go get the beds since he has the most money and she knows the sizes, and Little Hope can stay with mommy and try and make this place look happy." She orchestrated and I smiled and nodded before looking to Klaus. He was watching me with a small indecisive look and I had to look away when he started to smile.

When Hope complained about cleaning but was still trying to get all the dust off of the dining table and then smiling over at us. She had to be kidding about complaining because she kept making her hands dirty with dust as Hayley made her take a table napkin from one of the drawers near there and gave it to her to use. She was having fun cleaning, despite not knowing she was actually cleaning.

"Come on you two, we will drop you off and when Nik demands that those people deliver right away you can catch a ride back with them." Rebekah called out as Freya and her grabbed their smaller bags and I just walked towards them and was happy to go along with Klaus. He was right last night, and yesterday in the woods when he mentioned the attraction.

He and I sat in back because Rebekah didn't want to get out when we had to. I was staring outside and when we got to the intersection where the orphanage used to be. The empty lot was tall grass now, but the image of that home was still burned into my mind. I saw some people getting closer towards the lot, looking like they were conducting business. There was a couple large rolled up papers under ones arm and then I decided to listen.

"It was a great Christian act that Lenora McBarty did for the rest of her life. She took care of those kids and would have loved to have more. I think this should be the new Child Protective Services office. Build the building like the house on the outside, but make it more of a office feel on the inside." The man said and unrolled one of them. It showed off a big picture, with me as a young girl. It was huge, like they had blown it up and was going to post it somewhere.

I turned away when I felt the car moving and I focused back on where we were going, trying to get the image of that woman, holding my shoulder, out of my head. I barely remember that day, but I did remember how she hurt me. I couldn't have been more than 5, and I really had to go to the bathroom and instead of waiting 3 minutes she made us stand there and I couldn't control it. The flash of the old cameras scared me and I went all over myself. She smacked me and that was when I learned how to do laundry.

I felt someone looking at me and turned to see Freya and when we made eye contact she smiled and it seemed like she just knew what I was thinking about. I turned and was thankful that Klaus seemed to be doing something on his phone. He looked at me just after I looked away and I clenched my jaw before relaxing again. At least no one else noticed that I had zoned out to hear about the towns plans to rebuild the orphanage.

We got to the closest store that sold new mattresses and Klaus and I got out. He and I watched as his sisters went on and I went towards the front doors with him and he caught my arm and let his hand fold over mine as we walked inside fully.

We looked around for someone and saw 2 people helping a couple and a small family and I just took it upon myself to go and see the prices of the right sized beds. "That is a lot of gibberish. Why would a bed cost so much?" I asked looking up at Klaus and he came closer.

"That is for a King. Therefore, it is always that much." He told me and I shook my head. "Have you used money since you've been out and about in the world with that ring?" He asked and I shook my head.

"I mean I knew 50 dollars for a dress was a lot, especially when the dress wasn't layers and layers... but I didn't think other stuff went up like this." I said and shifted around and looked up at him.

"What kind of mattress do you have at that house?" He asked and I shrugged. "As old as you?"

"Maybe." I said and he smiled. "I like the mattress at the compound." I stated and smiled back before he waved me towards the bed. I looked around before moving around to lay down on it. I moved until I was flush and he smirked as he came around and laid beside me. He picked up a remote and started to shift the bed around. It started to conform to my back and then he did his and I just waited as he looked over at me.

"Better?"

"Yes." I admitted and he smiled again.

"Now, let's go lay on one of those." He said pointing at the one across from the end of this bed and I got up with him and he pulled me along until I was laying back again and I just sank into it. It felt better than the other one he had fit to my body. This one was soft. I sunk into it. I sighed and closed my eyes and I didn't even feel Klaus lay down or shift to watch me. He took my hand from my side and I opened my eyes to see him beside me, hand on his wrist, elbow near my shoulder, eyes amused. "We'll get this one."

"Hello there, I see you two picked out the bed made for honeymoons!" I heard an overly eager voice and saw a man at the nd of the bed watching the both of us. I started to stand and I noticed who fast Klaus got off the bed.

"Actually, my girl and I are going to be fixing up what was left to her in a will. An old house. We got there and found out that there is bed frames, only two very old mattresses, so we and our friends, are going to need six beds altogether, in an hour at the most. Money is no issue, and I would like 3 of these, and then 3 simple ones." He said and I could hear the compel in his voice as I sat back on the bed and looked at the others wondering which were simple.

"Right away sir." He nodded and went to work on the papers and to get the delivery guys here as fast as he could.

"Now what do we do?" I asked and he looked back at me and held out his hand after a moment. I took it without hesitation on my part and he pulled me up. He pulled me in towards his chest and kept a hand on my waist as he walked towards the counter.

"We're going back into town. When things are moving along and everything is packed up, give me a call at this number." Klaus wrote his number down before nodding to the man and then pulling me backwards before turning us around and walking towards the door.

"Why do people really like those things?" I asked nodding to his phone and he looked down at me.

"Don't tell me you don't have a cell phone."

"Damon got me one when he was teaching me things about the computers and stuff like that, I don't know what happened to it." I said and shrugged and looked around.

"Speaking of your father, I did heal him before we left so he isn't dead." He told me and I nibbled my lip realizing that I did leave Damon with a hybrid bite. And that it could have killed him.

"Thank you." I said it quick and shook my head. "I didn't even remember that it would hurt him." I said and felt my emotions rise once again. "So, what did you want to do?"

"I want you to show me around the woods." He declared and smiled before speeding us to the middle of the forest behind the town.

"Oh yeah? Well, who is to say I know these woods anymore?" I challenged and smiled when he just started to take off his jacket.

"I think this place is something you would never forget." I didn't say anything after that. He continued to take his shirt off and then give me a look when he caught me staring again. "We're shifting love, unless you want to go back?" He asked and I looked at him and then at his chest before turning and giving him my back as I took off my sweater. I used a branch to hold up the cloth and then I pulled the shirt over my head. I heard bones breaking and though he didn't make a noise I knew it was still unpleasant for him. I stayed facing away from him as I completed undressing and shifting. I rolled around in the dirt trying to ease the ache away without pressure.

Klaus was sniffing the air and I stood back up and sniffed as well until I caught a familiar scent. Algae and pond scum. There weren't any ponds in the forest, which meant we stopped near the well Damon first found me at. I took off with a slow trot towards the smell and I felt Klaus beside me before seeing him. He watched where we were going, sniffing the air every few feet to make sure we weren't in danger.

I got to the pond and sniffed around until I could smell something almost metal like. I used my paws to get the dirt out of the way before seeing a box, and it used to be my box. I dug around it before getting it up so I could take it in my mouth. I felt more like a dog than a wolf, but I carried it back to where our clothes were and I shifted not caring that Klaus might see me as I tugged things back on.

I pried the box open and a couple things went everywhere. I moved to get it all, picking up the earrings, the old papers, the picture. I saw the rings and the small doll I had made with the maid. I saw a lot of the small writings Damon was so proud of and I couldn't help but let the tears fall. He kept them, kept them safe and buried them where we had first met.

"What is it love?" Klaus asked sitting beside me and pulling me in for a hug as I continued to cry.


	15. Chapter 15

Klaus didn't know what to do with me. He held me and let me cry a bit more before offering me his phone so I could make a call. He dressed and slipped away to give me some space and when I opened up his phone and looked for Elijah's number I paused before hitting anything. I sat there, looked at the things in the box and though some emotions did rise, some did stay dormant. Like my reluctance to see Damon once again as a father. It was gone. Damon was the same man I knew... he just was reluctant to be that person because of what it cost him.

He not only buried me, he buried our life. He buried the chance to have a daughter, or a family again because his brother, his own flesh and blood, showed him that it was impossible for a vampire.

I hit call on Klaus' phone over Elijah's number and brought it up to my ear and waited until he answered. "Niklaus, I trust things are going down hill-"

"It's me... can I talk to Damon?" I asked cutting him off and waiting as he was either thinking about it or doing something more important.

"How are things?" He asked when I heard a door being opened.

"Dirty, apparently Rebekah doesn't like dark dusty homes and I lived in one for years." I said giving a small laugh and he huffed an almost laugh.

"My sister in many things, but she is not someone who tolerates a dirty home." He admitted and I nodded. "I have the person you want to talk to." He said and I waited as I heard whooshing of the air around the phone as he handed it to Damon.

"Hello?" I heard Damon and I paused.

"You didn't just bury me, did you?" I asked and picked up the box and looked it over. It was one of the first things he bought me that had a lot of value.

"No. I buried our life, I buried my heart, I buried everything. After you I flipped my switch and made a promise to make sure Stefan's life was something he would regret for years and years to come." He said and I heard a sigh come from him and I could just imagine him leaning back against something and waited for me to say something.

"You buried our picture, and some jewelry, and papers... my box. The first thing you ever bought me." I said and rubbed my thumb over the jewels on it and leaned back against the well. "You buried it where we first met."

"And some people don't call me apathetic." He laughed lightly and I gulped at the tone. "I told you Annie. You're my daughter. Not by blood, but by choice. I thought you were dead less than a month ago and every birthday you should have had, I drank myself into an oblivion. I lit a candle and put it in the window like I used to when you were scared. I would sit in my room, in the dark and think about how you must have felt when I had to feed in the house. How I had to put you into that small hole to keep you safe from those who ran away." He stopped and I heard the guilt in his voice and I waited.

"You let this world change you. You let your brothers actions shape you into a man that isn't the same as the one who raised me. I would love to have that one back more than anything. I actually feel like you are my father again, but you're not. You're a new person, and me having those expectations to be father and daughter again was foolish. I will always love you Damon, but I can't be under your thumb. You can't control where I go, when I go there, and how I get there. You can't do things and blame it on trying to protect me." I stated feeling like I was disobeying everything I was ever taught. I was leaving him, I would always be his daughter, be the woman he raised, but I was no longer his to command or protect.

"Annie-"

"I love you Damon. I love that you took me in, that you loved me and protected me. But that can't happen again. I've past 18 over a century ago and nowadays that is old enough to be an adult. Women in these times carry weapons, and I am a hybrid. I have new things I learn about myself everyday, and I have to do it on my own and learn about it. You can't do this to me, or yourself. Niklaus is helping me, Freya will help me if I need it, and Hayley is my blood, my real family. I have to live my own life. And I don't think you should be apart of it until I get things settled." I knew that would hurt him. I had to get to know myself again before I just let him dictate to me all over again.

"You should know that I was going to leave you as soon as you got married. I would have found you the best husband, compelled him to make you happy no matter what, and then I would have left you forever." He stated and I heard the phone click and I pulled it away to see that he had ended the call. I wiped my face and stood up moving to pull on my shoes and I looked at the box.

The wind started to pick up and a few papers were blowing away and I watched the picture get lifted and then watch it disappear into the trees and the air and didn't bat an eye when I heard feet crunching the leaves and twigs behind me.

"Ready?" He asked and I nodded turning back to him and holding out his phone.

"I told you I didn't like those." I said and kept walking as he stood still. He was behind me quite a while, giving me space to calm down.

We got a ride with the mattresses and he didn't speak, or ask questions and I was thankful he wasn't asking me to tell him, though he might have overheard anyways. He was letting me have my space and when we got back to my old home, he brought me in so I was helping clean with Hayley and Hope. How he acted around Hope was almost how Damon used to act around me. Like I was going to break, yet trying his best to make her giggle and laugh and let her have a good time.

It was admirable. When Hayley and I started to move up the stairs she asked me about how I felt to be back here, again.

"At least I am not alone. I was in this house by myself for so long." I shook my head and looked around a bit before sighing. "When I was young, before this house, I would live with lot of kids, and the laughter that your daughter is bringing and how this old house carries it is like music." I said and felt a little corny saying it but it was true.

"If there is anything I can say about Klaus... he knows how to make our daughter laugh." Hayley nodded with a small smile.

"He's good with her. When I was growing up I used to want brothers and sisters, even tried to convince Damon to adopt more since I knew he couldn't have any... and when I got to be about 16, I started to imagine my life. My family. I would have 5 kids. Each of them loved as much as the other. Each of them happy and carefree. All of them becoming the best that they could ever be." I laughed and felt a little sad remembering those things I had locked away in my memory so long ago. "Things changed." I admitted and shook off my memories and took a deep breath.

"You can still have that. I am sure that being a hybrid can have kids. I still get my period. Which means my womb still works." She tried to appease me and I smiled at her efforts.

"You were a wolf first... I was not. Who is to say things are different in my body now?" I asked and shook my head. "It's better to not get my hopes up." I declared.

"Klaus was once a vampire first, and that laughter you hear... that joy you feel at hearing it again, it's because he can have children. Granted it wasn't the best start to any kind of family... but this isn't the worst family I ever have been apart of." She said smiling and she moved away again.

"Hurry up! They aren't even that heavy!" I heard Freya's voice before the door opened. I went towards the door and side stepped the door as she pushed open the door. She swung the huge bag of potatoes inside and went for another bag and I backed up only to bump into him. Klaus wrapped an arm around my stomach, his hand expanding over it completely.

"Freya, as a witch I know you don't have any kind of awareness unless it is dangerous... but we are right behind you." He called out making his older sister stop what she was doing. I held out my hand and gave a smile as I took the other bag. Klaus' hand tensed on my stomach before pulling it slowly away. I turned to my left and sucked in a breath when I noticed Hope watching how he had been holding me. "Hope, help Aunt Freya with her bags, I am going to help your other aunt with the rest." Klaus ordered and I moved again and kept the small smile on her face.

"Yes dad." She cheered and I kept walking. Realizing the electricity was on in the house. I got things into the fridge and then found new clean cabinets. I walked around the kitchen and put things in new food and cleaned when I got to the dirty ones I left them open and setting down the food. The others brought in the rest of the bags and put away things.

Freya took over as she started to cook with the cookware they brought along as well. I went towards the other rooms and stopped at Damon's old study. I opened the doors and the spotless room came into focus. I moved to push the curtains aside. I looked around after letting the light in and moved to lock the doors. There were only two sets.

I went back to the things laid out on the desk, started a fire, and started to burn the papers, the endless writings of my interpretations of suffering, or suicide thoughts, of things I now think I should have never written down. The drawings of the sun I had basically perfected over my years here. My sorrow of being alone all those years and how I would do anything to change that. I would do anything to find Damon and be a family again. I watched as they burned before hearing a knock on the front door and I looked around to make sure that things weren't obvious. I opened the door and looked out to see Hope.

"What's in here?" She asked and I opened the door for her to look around. "It's already clean." She announced and I nodded. "Whose room is this?" She asked and went towards the bookcase and took one before going towards the chair behind it. She sat down, and opened the book. "Daddy reads this to me." She said and I looked at the book.

"My father used to read that to me as well. He worked in here. Sometimes I would come in when he was throwing himself into a nightmare of work... I would come in here and sit on his lap and order him to read to me. I would fall asleep, and while he carried me to bed he would realize he was working into the night and would sleep himself." I smiled recalling Damon with his messy hair, his tired eyes, and his amused eyes when I would beg him to read to me.

"I don't have to get my dad to read to me. He likes to talk." She giggled and I smiled. I heard a throat clear behind me and turned to see Klaus in the door way watching his daughter with scrutiny.

"How did you get that book little wolf?" Klaus asked walking closer noticing the poems and I smiled.

"That book, is my copy." I stated and moved around the table. "I have a lot of those. Plays too." I said and looked around.

"This room is spotless." He commented looking around and I nodded.

"I spent a lot of time in here, reading every book hundreds of times. Adding a couple new ones to Damon's collection."

"You call your dad by his first name? What age can I start doing that Klaus?" She asked and I smiled again and looked towards him.

"When we're both dead, which will never happen. Hope, go see if your Aunt Freya is done with your food." He ordered and Hope giggled again and hoped down and unlocked the other door before running through the house. "I don't think I like the influence that you have on her. She is very interested in you." Klaus said moving closer and I titled my head.

"Maybe you should have a talk with your daughter. Seems she likes to push your buttons." I said and moved to him and patted his shoulder. "I take it you didn't enjoy being around kids as you aged." I muttered pulling away and moving around to where Damon's chair was and I sat down. "Kids push, they want to know how far they can go." I stated and remembered the new kids in the house. I shook my head and looked back at him.

"Annabeth, what did you burn in here?" He asked taking a sniff and I had to admit that the room smelled of burned paper and ropes.

"Things I no longer need." I stated and moved to get some of more of the papers I had forgotten about and just as I was about to throw them in the fire Klaus caught my arm and pulled the papers back.

"What are these?" He asked and I sighed.

"My feelings about being left here. It's smudged because I was crying all alone." I said and he took it with him as he took my place at Damon's chair and I sighed. "Don't read them." I pleaded and moved to get them but he moved them to the side and swiveled the chair making me tumble onto his lap.

"I want to. So I will. And I could read them with you here, or you can go off and clean some other room. This one is clean." He said and I pushed his chest getting up. I tried to snatch them again but he was keeping them just out of reach. I even stood up and leaned over him. He sped and put them up high before returning and pressing me against the wall and smiled over me. "You don't have to clean, we can stay in here, just like this-"

I slapped him, hard. Making his face turn to the side and I felt the emotions rise. My veins emerged and I wanted to feast on him. Who was he to come into my sanctuary, my room, and not only order me to clean, but to allow him to read what would explain my darkest days? "If you read those Niklaus, whatever you think we feel for each other is over. Those papers were to never be seen and I don't care who you are, I will not tolerate disrespect in my own home. I was alone for almost a hundred years, and I could do with a thousand more to make sure no one will dictate my every move." I stated pushing him back and moving to the papers he had put up. I crumpled them and threw them in the fire before walking out of the study.

"Hey, I was wondering, it is the night after a full moon, do you want to head out into the woods tonight and try and find the wolves?" I heard Hayley before I made it to the stairs. I looked up at her hanging over the balcony and watching me and I nodded. "How about after dinner." She said and I nodded again.

"We should all go." I heard Klaus and I turned to him.

"Why don't you stick to being a father and stay with Hope. You were so against her coming in the first place right?" I asked giving him another glare and going up the stairs. I got to Damon's old room, I moved to break his bed down, ripping things apart before throwing them out of the window. I was cleaning, and making a mess all at the same time, but at least I was letting the anger out now. At least I felt it now.


	16. Chapter 16

We had some kind of food for dinner, it was good but not the best I have ever had. I ignored Klaus and got ready to go searching for people in the woods that could possibly be Hayley and I's distant family from the first pack my brother was apart of. Hayley made small talk and little bits of obvious worry over how I treated to Klaus. He thankfully didn't come when we left the house and I even though I was still mad, I did want him to insist on coming, and I did want him to talk to me instead of letting me ignore him.

"Hayley, if you want to ask me something, go ahead and ask me." I stated after we were walking for a while and I was almost fed up with her beating around the bush.

"What caused you to snap at Klaus earlier?" She asked stopping and I sighed and stopped and kicked around a couple twigs.

"I wrote a lot of my feelings down when I was alone. After almost a 100 years things turned dark more than a couple times. I was burning the papers I had written them on when Klaus stated he was going to read them." I said and shrugged. "I took exception. Tried to get them from him and then he pinned me to the wall... we kissed a few times before, but the way he was insinuating me doing other things with him to persuade him not to read those wasn't worth it. I smacked him and told him that if he did read them the thing we both felt would be over." I said and shook my head. "After that he let me take the papers and I burned them."

"What do you mean he insinuated you doing things?" Hayley asked moving closer and looking closer at my face.

"Nothing he didn't do before. He took me to a hotel room once... I walked out before he could say anything besides want to be a secret." I shook my head and started to move again. "Lets find this pack, find out about my family, and then we can go back to the house for a good nights rest." I told her and moved towards where I heard a slight crackling. It sounded like a fire, and it smelled like it too.

"Okay." Hayley was just behind me when I felt an arrow his my thigh. "Annie!" She shouted and I gripped the end and pulled it out right away.

"It's healed." I said feeling it closing up anyways. I tossed the arrow and looked around hoping to spot someone. I felt my eyes seek out any light, glowing and showing my wolf side, and that was when I heard another arrow flying at us from behind. I turned and caught it inches away from Hayley's neck. But just after that I felt two in my back and I was being pulled backwards. I hit my head a couple times before I just went out.

"Annie." I heard Hayley when I woke up. "How are you feeling?" She asked when I looked over to her. We were both being detained by vervain ropes and I tried to ignore the pain and still break free but the 17 wraps weren't easy.

"What happened?" I asked looking around. There was a burnt out fire near by still giving off slight smoke.

"They grabbed you, held a stake to your chest and I came willingly. They said they would talk with us in the morning. It's morning and at least you got that good nights sleep you wanted." She said and I sighed.

"And where are these people who shot me in the back!" I shouted wanting to wake someone else up. "Hello!" I shouted and screamed when I felt something hit my shoulder. "Are you serious? If someone shoots me again I am going to rip the persons head off as soon as I get loose. Do you understand me!" I shouted and looked to my now gushing arm.

"Annie calm down, if you make threats we won't be let go. As it is we are a long ways from any civilization and the only kid I saw has the same birthmark as I do." She said to me and I looked at her.

"You're sure about a birthmark?" I asked and thought about my own. It was on my side, under my arm and beside my bosom.

"The crescent moon." She said and I titled my head.

"You have one? Where?" I asked leaning in and I she titled her head.

"You have one too don't you?" She accused and I nodded. "These are our family. At least there are some..." She stopped and looked over my shoulder and I stopped.

There stood a man, watching us, coming closer. My eyes drifted to the birthmark on his neck, in plain sight, and then I looked him in the eye. "Who are you?"

"Lucas. Now, you two are hybrids, you're the mother of the Original Hybrid's only child. Part of my pack from a long line. Now, who are you?" He asked looking back at me after giving Hayley a glance. "I'm chief."

"Great... now, almighty Chief Lucas, let us both go. We can be civilized." I said feeling my skin try to close up over the arrow still lodged into my arm.

"Oh really? You were just threatening my clan by beheading." I heard him and I rolled my eyes.

"You get shot with arrows at night and then again when you are waking up." I stated and looked towards him again. "That mark on your neck is on my side, and apparently on my fear great great nieces back. Let us up and we can show you." I said and he glared at me and then Hayley.

He moved to untie her and she sped to help untie me. I was free and I moved t lift my shirt and I showed both my birthmark. "See, now, why don't you tell me your family history." I stated and crossed my arms and looking towards him.

He glared at me still and I waited. "Come with me." He ordered and I walked with him until we were walking into the small hut that was surprisingly clean and the pregnant woman inside was glowing with happiness as she slept. He grabbed a book and turned to us. He walked with me to the other side of the home before waving us out with another book in his hand. I turned as Hayley did and we walked out without making any sound for the tired mother to be.

He walked to a small abandoned table and sat down before watching us. I waited quite patiently as he flipped through the book and when he landed on a page he turned it to me. "You said great great right?" He asked and I nodded.

I looked at the page and noticed names. I looked for Annabeth and saw it.

Annabeth White. Daughter of Jerimiah and Eloise White. Sister of not only 1 brother, but 3 and 1 sister.

In order of birth it was Angelina, Eric, Steven, and Gregory. They were reach 3 years apart.

"Which one is the one I descend from?" Hayley asked when I started to share the book.

"Angelina. When she turned 21, like pack rules, she went to marry. I stem from Gregory." He said and I clenched my teeth.

"What happened to the other two?" I asked and doing the math I would know that Eric would be seen as a man when Damon came looking.

"Eric was off when a vampire came into the clan. He was marrying off Angelina, and Steven was off hunting. They both survived that leeches purge of our kind." He said and turned his eyes on me. "You were supposed to marry into another pack as well. One from a closer pack. Surprisingly enough... a worthy wolf from Mystic Falls." He said and I narrowed my eyes.

"What happened to Jerimiah and Eloise?" I asked and he somber expression turned dark.

"Witches happened. On a full moon your father accidently killed one. They started to rain down fire. Your parents couldn't leave you with scattering wolves so they ventured into town and left you. Your siblings weren't old enough and yet too old not to try and come home. The next full moon while your patents came back, they killed almost every witch. They died trying to make this pack safe." He said and I nodded in understanding.

I felt a shift in the wind and listened hard before hearing Rebekah shouting my name and then Hayley's name. "I will be back." I said standing and excusing myself. I found my way to her and felt a hand over my throat as I was stopped.

"Are you okay? What happened? Where have you been?" Klaus let go of my neck and touched my cheeks and to the side and then the other.

"We are fine. We found some kind of blood relative. He is telling us about my siblings." I said and pushed his hands away. "So nice of you to come looking the morning after." I said and looked towards Rebekah.

"Freya couldn't get a lock on you guys, we've been searching the woods for bloody hours." She complained and crossed her arms. "Where is Hayley?"

"I heard you calling so I came. Come on." I said and started to walk. I felt Klaus grab my arm again and stop me from walking.

"Rebekah be a dear and keep going. Hayley should be close enough for us to find by now." He oozed happiness that was as fake as pleather and I turned and faced him.

"Yes brother." She sassed and sped off and I was left alone with him.

"You said you were fine, but you weren't. You have holes in your shirt, blood stains... what happened?" He asked touching my back lightly and I took a moment.

"They didn't know who we were, and they were protecting themselves. Bygones are bygones. Like I said, I am fine." I said again trying to make him see that things were okay.

"You'll forgive people you don't know for shooting you but you are still pissed off about what I said yesterday." He sounded as if he didn't understand the different between a stranger hurting me, and someone I know.

"I asked, simply asked, you not to read them and while I struggled to get them from you your response was to blackmail me into bed. Your bed that many women have shared with you, obviously not the same mattress, and while I told you that there had be no other you still bluntly invite me to do such things that I still would reserve for marriage." I said and poked his chest to keep him from coming any closer than the two steps he came.

"I don't know how you are still so backward in your mind. Women today would throw themselves at me. Women toady spend days in and out at jobs that most times pay more money to her than to a male. Most women today never even get married and still have children. Look at Hayley. Had my baby, is shaking up with my older brother." He said waving his hand out and I gave him a look. "Most women know how to use something as simple as a car or a phone." He added and I glared.

"Well, maybe you should stop trying to get what I won't give and find yourself someone who is like most women." I stated and turned to walk off. He didn't grab me again and as I walked 5 steps he followed with his own pace, his arms flying wildly as he breathed deep and refrained from doing anything serious. I walked and when Hayley came into focus she shifted her eyes between us before smiling.

"Lucas has something meant for you." She told me and I looked around for the man before seeing him digging.

It looked to be a makeshift tombstone and while he pulled a box out he turned to me. "These are from your siblings." He said and moved to start expanding the hole. I noticed another part of a box and I gulped.

What are these?


	17. Chapter 17

They were journals. One from each of my siblings that stayed here in the woods. They had a few from Angelina but my brothers had written me for years, most of their lives at least. I had opened one and looked for a date. Gregory had written not even 18 years ago. I took the boxes to the table we had been sitting at and started to look for the first writings.

When I found them, it seemed to be just after my birth. Angelina's first journal. She had been 12 at the time of my birth.

 **My dearest little sister,**

 **Mother and father haven't told us your name yet, I am sure it will be something pretty and smart. For you look both. I got to hold you by myself. Father was tending to mothers food and helping her eat. You had started to fuss and so I picked you up. You were heavier than I thought you would be. You're sturdy which means that you will live though the last of the winter to come.**

 **Our brothers are loud and don't yet realize that you can be louder. The pack has heard you wail for only minutes after your first breath and it silenced everyone. I heard about the naming ceremony they want to do with you, and since it is such a close night to the full moon it might take some time.**

 **Mother, father and I will be heading out to shift... I triggered it a year ago. This boy had been chasing after me from the nearby town. He caught me, pulled my clothes and hair. I turned to push him off and while he fell, he cracked his skull on a big rock. Mother found me crying near the boys body.**

 **We had to leave him there for his family to find. We heard them for hours near our home, calling out his name. At least when they called out I knew his name.**

 **If there is one wish I have for you little sister, it is that you never trigger your curse like I have. I will always love you no matter what.**

 **Forever your older sister,**

 **Angie**

I set the page flat and looked over it again before feeling Hayley sit next to me. "What age did you trigger your curse?" I asked her and she blinked.

"17." She said and I nodded and looked away before flipping the page.

 **Dear Annabeth,**

 **I told you before that our parents would give you a strong beautiful name. You grow into yourself with each passing week. You sleep despite our brothers antics. Gregory is still young but so rambunctious. He loves to make noise and run around the hut. Eric love to sing the old songs we have been taught and Steven likes to complain about almost everything.**

 **I already long for the days where we can giggle and play like they do. I always wanted a little sister, but now I have to wait for you to grow up some before the fun actually begins.**

 **Mother and father have secured an alliance with other packs, marriage contracts for not only me but Eric will have a bride in the far north. He will move there because the Chiefs wife could only have one child, and it was a girl.**

 **Steven and Gregory will likely take over, and then there is you. We have heard of a new clan forming close by, but not real news. I would wish for you to remain close to home as much as possible. This place is beautiful.**

 **When I was small we had been moving around quite a lot. I had seen places with nothing but rocks, others with no trees any longer. There are some things that men love to tear down, and this forest hasn't been touched. I hope it remains that way for the rest of our lives.**

 **You're waking now, mom is asking for me to calm you down before you wake Gregory from his nap. I can't wait for you to be older so we could talk instead of me writing everything down.**

 **Your sister,**

 **Angie**

I read weeks of small letters and entries about how I could blow bubbles and how I would make her smile after a hard full moon. Then the hard one came.

 **Mother and father dropped out off somewhere in town while they ran from the witches. Father killed one during a full moon. The woman had been interested and had gotten too close. Dad's wolf didn't like that. The witches retaliated and killed some of the men with dad. They are running until the next full moon. You're to only stay in town for just a couple more days.**

 **I miss you.**

 **I haven't heard from mom or dad since they fled, the witches were after them and have left the pack alone. Mom's younger cousin is taking care of our siblings, she isn't the best cook, she's barely 20 but she is keeping us alive. She hasn't triggered the curse, and I hope she never does. But tomorrow night I am going to have to leave to shift.**

 **I am going to go deeper into the woods to make sure I don't hurt anyone else, especially our family.**

It stopped there and didn't end with love, or your sister. The next entry didn't start with anything just scribbles and tear drops blurring the words. The only thing still legible was " **Father and mother perished, and we can't get you back.** "

I closed the book and looked towards Hayley before sighing. "Are you okay?" She asked me and I nodded and shrugged before shaking my head.

"I'd like to read these back at the house." I declared and turned towards the other side of the table to get out since she was too close and I didn't want to hit her with my legs.

Klaus held my arm and pulled me in towards him and when I tried to back away he shushed me and grabbed the book to put between us. He grabbed the rest of the books in the other crate and nodded to Hayley as she pulled one closer to her. "Let's get back." He held my side closer and started to pull me along. I looked around in a daze as we walked and thought back to Angelina's words. About how this place was beautiful.

Klaus kept me close and when I stopped at a small clearing and he did some sort of signal to get the others to keep moving. I saw rocks that were placed in the middle like the rocks that had marked the boxes with the journals inside. I looked at the carved names and when I saw E. White next to a J. White I stopped.

"Are these them?" Klaus asked behind me and I nodded.

"Died protecting the clan from witches. My sister triggered her curse at 11, my brothers were barely being taken care of by a 20 year old. The orphanage was their only choice for someone as small as me." I stated looking down at the rocks with the names on them.

"At least you know they cared love." He stood beside me and grabbed my hand and pulled it up to his mouth. He gave it a kiss and rubbed his thumb over my knuckles. "Let's get you back and into bed for a better rest." He said pulling on my hand. I was holding the book Angie had been writing in and held it to my chest with one arm and felt him speed us back to the house.

I walked into the back and moved through and up the stairs and into my room. I felt Klaus following me. I kicked off my shoes and crawled into bed taking the book with me. I was in the middle of the bed, hating the older pillows compared to the new mattress I was laying on. I opened the book trying to focus but I heard Klaus coming in and out with the crates and stacking them in by the door.

He came closer bringing a chair from the hallway. "Love, what's going on in that mind of yours?" He asked titling his head as he rested his forearms on the bed.

"I can't read these." I shook my head setting the book down and he touched it and brought it closer.

"Do you mind if I read them to you then?" He asked, this time waiting to open the book.

"You'd read all of these to me?" I asked and he looked at the book in his hands, then back at the crates before looking back at me.

"Yes." He admitted and I closed my eyes. "Do you want one now?"

"No... I think I have had enough for today. I am hungry." I said and turned to get out of bed. I was out of the room and hearing Hope talking with her mom as I walked into the kitchen. I saw an orange and went to peel it.

I cut it up and then an apple and moving towards getting a couple grapes. I took it back up the stairs, passing the door where the rest of the family was and when I got to my room again Klaus was reading over a couple letters. "Hope you don't mind me reading ahead." He said looking over at me and I shook my head.

"Hayley will want to read them, which means Elijah will know, and then you all will know. Why not get started." I said sitting on the bed eating everything sperate and together.

"What can I say... my family is a bunch of nosey sods." He laughed lightly and I sighed.

"What was it like? You know, to grow up with siblings." I said and he laughed after a long thought.

"Ups and downs, but at the end of the day... we're thick as thieves." He said and I took a moment.

"Was it fun?" I asked turning and setting the plate down.

"Fun is not a word I would use most of the time. But over the last thousand years we have all had a lot of fun." He said setting the journal down and leaning forward. "You look tired love, get some rest." He stood now and walked closer.

"Why are you so worried about me?" I asked and he knelt this time and moving my hair away and leaning down to kiss my forehead.

"The last time I worried about someone it was my daughter. You I am just taking care of. Sleep. I can tell you about my family when you wake up." He said and I made eye contact with me before smiling his crooked smile before winking. I turned to lay on my back and closed my eyes trying to sleep.

And when I did I just started to imagine what Angelina looked like. What she aged like. What my brothers looked like.


	18. Chapter 18

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 _The howl was just behind me. Getting closer as I walked. I wasn't afraid. It was almost peaceful. The choruses of the clan howls was beautiful music. I jumped when I felt hands on my shoulders and looked back to see Klaus smiling down at me. I leaned up and he met my lips with his, his hands moved down to my hips and tugged until I was right in front of him._

 _He was grinning so wide, and as was I when we pulled away and the howls got louder, and more joined. He rested his forehead on mine and we both heard it. Chanting. I looked around and saw women, some men, and some kids. Hands outstretched and while I felt the pain it seemed like Klaus was being crippled with it. I clenched my hands and felt the thirst. I started to attack. I bit and snapped necks. Once enough of them were down I noticed Klaus attacking the others._

 _I stopped when one grabbed my neck. She had red flaming hair and while she grinned her hand went to my stomach. I looked down and saw the belly that held a child and I screamed at the paid they were inflicting._

I was screaming as I woke up and I was sweating and I got out of bed rushing to the bathroom to look at myself. I heard the door being opened with a bang and I heard more than one pair of feet rushing in. Taking a quick look to my stomach before focusing on my neck as Hayley came in followed by Klaus with Hope on his side.

"What happened?" She asked and I breathed.

"Witches. They were attacking." I said and pictured the witch again. "Red hair, in ringlets. Old school. Green eyes." I said and turned to see Hayley with a questioning look before turning to Klaus. "She reached through my stomach..." I said putting my hand there and it actually hurt. I lifted my shirt and saw a huge bruise.

"You weren't hurt there yesterday." Hayley said looking at it and I just touched it again.

"Any bruise should have healed by now." I stated and noticed how it wasn't healing one bit. Hayley came closer and her fingers drifted over it before she frowned.

"There is something in there." She declared and I looked towards Hope and then Klaus. "It needs to come out."

"Hayley, take Hope back to bed. I will help." Klaus held his daughter out and I covered my stomach. It was moments before Rebekah offered to hold my hands and I went to lay back down on the bed. Klaus rubbed over my stomach as Rebekah held me in her lap and I took deep breaths. "It'll be quick." He told me and I relaxed. He touched my stomach, pushing down slightly before pushing in quick. His eyes were trained on his hand and I screamed as he went around and he started to pull something.

It was a long necklace. It had engravings on a flat surface and as he kept pulling I felt as if I was going to be sick. I gagged and felt blood come bubbling up my throat. "She's convulsing Rebekah, turn her to the side." I heard Klaus order as he finished getting the necklace out.

I spit out the blood and took deep breaths before feeling my stomach slowly start to close. I felt a wrist in my face before I just latched on and drank. Rebekah held me up and Klaus scooted in behind me instead and she took the necklace and went to rinse my blood off of it. "You're okay." Hayley said coming in and taking deep breaths like she was the one who just had Klaus' hand in her stomach.

"This isn't good." Rebekah said coming back in with a black rosary.

"What is on it?" I asked and moved to sit up but Klaus' arm kept me locked in to his front.

"It says thank you Annabeth, Lucas' family has been found. Who the hell is Lucas?" She asked and I looked right to Hayley.

"I was pregnant in my dream. His mate-"

"Was huge." She said and I nodded. "We need to get back to that camp." She declared and this time Klaus let me stand on my own and as I started to get shoes on he stopped me and took a cold rag to my stomach and then handed me a new shirt. I moved to take mine off but felt the pull of my insides still healing.

"Let me." He ordered and moved to take my shirt off my arms when I could barely move them around. He helped put my new one on and I watched his face as he finished pulling it down. "We'll find your other family." He told me and cupped my cheek. "Elijah is the one most people think as honorable, but I give you my word, my unbreakable one, that if anyone in your family is hurt, I will retaliate with whatever you deem fit."

"I just need to make sure that baby is okay." I said and felt my voice crack. That dream, the one with Klaus and I as the pregnant couple made me almost long for a child. To have that possibility and the thought of someone else having that and it being taken away is a lot more cruel than me only getting a glimpse of it.

"Hope you're staying here." I heard Hayley declare and I got the hallway to see the little one dressed and ready to go.

"I'll stay with dad!" She shouted and crossed her arms.

"You'll stay in the house. Is Freya awake?" Klaus declared behind me and I looked to him before hearing a 'yes' from a closed door. "Someone has to stay with Hope, and Freya has to be with us. Rebekah-"

"Okay." His sister cut him off walking out and pushing her hair over her shoulder. "She can't escape me anyways." She said looked at Hope.

"I want to go!" Hope stated stomping her foot and I turned to her.

"I know you do. But despite how your father and mother could protect you... I would rather you be safe instead. Here. Out there could be a trap and that is no way to get ahold of you." I explained and kneeled down to her level. "We have to go out to make sure that the others we found yesterday are safe. I won't have you but yourself in danger. You're only a little girl, when you're grown you can do what you wish... but that is a long time from now." I declared before Hayley or anyone else could object me from saying something along those lines.

"Fine." She pouted and I gave her a small smile before getting up.

"Let's get going." I said and passed the parents before going down the stairs. I sped through the forest before getting the tangible scent of blood. It smelled like a lot and I just waited until I felt Hayley near me. Klaus had taken Freya with him and showed up a second later.

We walked into the clearing with the huts and the fire still going. I saw a body near the fire, throat slit. Someone we didn't recognize. I kept going until I found Lucas' hut and I pushed open the door. I saw him, eyes still open, stabbed in the heart with one of his own arrows, his son that couldn't have been older than 7 beside him, a slit on his belly. Looking to the bed I saw the belly of his mate slashed open and the baby had it's body ripped from it's mothers body.

I cried and fell to my knees picking up the babe and I let out a choked sob when I realized it was still alive. I took deep breaths and started to clean it's eyes free of the gook and away from his nose. It was a boy. I looked up and noticed how everyone turned to look at us. The babe let out a sniffle and I focused back on him. I picked him up and rocked him before looking back to Klaus and then Hayley.

She was still by Lucas and I looked over to his body and his older sons and I noticed Freya doing a spell on Lucas before Klaus closed his eyes and moved to close his sons eyes. Hayley was leaning against the door, looking at the body with a hand over her mouth and silent tears strolling down.

"This happened not even 4 hours ago." Freya said to us looking back and forth.

I focused back on the baby and felt Klaus coming closer. He was taking off his jacket and held it out for me to place the baby in. As soon as I set him in Klaus' arms he started to wail and I brought him back but still wrapped in his jacket. He calmed down and I rocked him from side to side.

"We need to get him fed." Hayley stated and I looked from the baby to her and then to Klaus.

"I know what Hope used to drink... I will go into town and find it. Get him to the house." He told me and I nodded. Supporting him I walked past them and made it outside before speeding home. He did not like that. He cried for minutes before Rebekah took him from me and rocked happily and almost looked as if she missed it.

"He's so tiny." She commented looking up at me and I nodded. "Early birth?"

"Forced birth." Freya's voice flowed and she came into the pictures. "I can check him out if you'd like." She said turning to me and I just nodded. She took him from Rebekah and as he started to fuss until she bounced him and started to chant in a happy voice and used her magic.

"Where's daddy?" Hope asked and I turned to see Hayley holding her tight.

"He went to get the baby something to eat." She kissed the crown of Hopes head and sighed. "Let's get you back in bed. If you're still awake when he gets here I will send him up for another story." Hayley promised and passed us. Her face was masked from what it looked like earlier. She smiled at her daughter as she yawned and I looked at the baby in Freya's arms.

I sat there watching the sisters pass the baby back and forth and when Klaus waltzed into the house with diapers, wipes, food, and baby lotion I watched as they got to work helping him. I sat near the stairs as Hayley said something about Hope fighting to sleep until he told her another story. I heard something about Elijah and Kol and then he was heading upstairs.

Hayley went in and started to help Rebekah and Freya calm him down as he started to cry. I stood and went towards the sound and he was being dried off and I rocked back and forth nervous. I wanted to take him but I had no experience with babies. The three before me did.

"Give him to me." Klaus ordered walking in behind me and I watched him take the boy before looking down at him as he started to scream a bit louder and as he walked towards me and held him out. "Take him." He told me and I held out my hands right away to take the babe. He cried for just a few moments before noticing me. His eyes were wide open like he was weeks old. I had seen babies before and one that knew the difference between faces so fast was a special ones.

I looked from the babe up to Klaus who looked pleased with himself that he knew that the boy would stop crying in my arms. "He needs a name." Rebekah stated getting up and walking closer.

"Then name him." I said and shrugged when she just smiled.

"He's a mama's boy, let's call him Finn." Klaus said and Freya rolled her eyes before smacking his head.

"How could he be a mamas boy?" I asked and looked between the siblings.

"He doesn't know anyone, and yet he only calms when you hold him... he thinks your his mother." Rebekah said it slow and I looked from her to Klaus before the baby and started to shake my head.

"I don't know babies. I was not a mother. I didn't have siblings." I shook my head and looked at the people around me and tried to push the boy back towards one of them but when he started to cry.

"You're his mother now." Freya told me and I pulled him back to quiet him down.

"Let's get him fed." Klaus said staying with my as the women left me with the baby. He started to make a bottle and warming it up and I just looked at the baby. "Thinking of names love?" He asked setting the bottle down.

"I wouldn't know where to begin." I said and tipped the bottle up for the boy. He latched on and sucked. Poor thing must be starving.

"Niklaus is a nice name." He said and I gave him a look and he winked and smiled.

"If you had a son you would name him after yourself?" I asked wondering if Hope would have been a carbon copy of him.

"No. I would have named him something else." He said and I waited as I turned to him to show I wanted to know what.

"Come on, tell me." I urged and he smiled.

"I would have named him Elijah."

REVEIW PLEASE!


	19. Chapter 19

After the little one was fed I decided to stay awake. Klaus slept on the couch after drifting off. I had been holding the baby as I read one of the old books when I heard a car pulling up in the early morning. I stood and went towards the door when I knock sounded. I got closer and opened the door revealing Kol. Elijah was steps behind him and I nodded to them.

"Can I come in?" Kol asked when he tried to step through.

"Of course, come on in." I said and moved aside. The boy started to wake and I shifted to face him.

"A boy?" Kol asked with a smile and I nodded and he walked in while Elijah closed the door.

"Where is my brother?" Elijah asked and I turned to look towards the living room.

"He's in there on the couch. He is asleep." I said and he nodded and turned to walk up the stairs. "She's in the first room on the left." I added and he nodded his thanks as he started to take the stairs two at a time.

"Can I hold him? I almost never got to hold Hope that small." He said looking at him and I relaxed when I realized he was asleep and I moved to hand him over. He went almost automatically. He moved his hands as he opened and closed the but stayed asleep as Kol held him in the same way I did.

"I will get your brother up to his room." I said knowing I wanted to do that but didn't want to move too much with the babe in my arms.

"No offense love but you should get some sleep as well." He said and smiled at me and then followed me towards the couch Klaus was on. I reached over the back and tapped his hand that was on his chest and he opened his eyes right away and I smiled.

"Your brothers are here, let's go up and get some sleep." I said and he sat up.

"Where's the boy?"

"Kol holds him like I do so he doesn't know the difference while he sleeps." I said and he looked over to his brother. They shared a nod and Klaus stood up and grabbed my hand to pull me behind him. I went up and when he pushed the door to my room open we both paused at the sight of my blood still on the sheets of my bed.

"Let's go to my room." He said turning to me and maneuvering me to be in front of him. I relaxed against him and felt the exhaustion hit me. I went into his room and felt a bit of worry seep from my bones and as I sat down to take off my shoes he was taking off his shirt and his shoes and I waited. "I trust Elijah is with Hayley." He said and I nodded and moved towards the window. The window was wet and everything outside was as well.

I felt his hands on my waist and I titled my head away a bit before seeing the rain coming down in sheets. "Is it wrong that I feel almost nothing?" I asked him and he tightened his grip a bit before moving us so we were facing each other.

"No. You barely knew that man, you didn't even know his mate." He said and I nodded.

"I could have been able to know them. I found them. I guess that's why I felt a bit emotional... something I almost wanted was taken away before I could make my mind up about them." I said and met his eyes and felt that again. I had felt something about finding more about my brothers and sisters, about how they died and lived, and if that isn't in their journals... how else would I find out about it now that Lucas was gone?

"I don't dwell on what could have been. I focus on the now." He told me and I felt him getting closer and I leaned against him. "What do you want to do? Sleep?"

"I kind of want to read the journals." I said pulling back and he grabbed my elbow and kept my close. I felt his face close to mine and when I looked up he was watching me with a small look.

"You get in bed, I will get the one you were reading today." He said and I shook my head.

"I want to know about Gregory." I said knowing that was Lucas' lineage.

"They're sorted out." He guessed as he left me and went towards my room. I moved to sit on the bed after pulling the blankets back and when he came back he had just one book, it looked huge and there were a lot of papers hanging out of certain parts and he carried it with ease and when he saw me sitting he moved to pull the blankets up. "Lay down. You're sleeping here tonight while your bed is stained with blood." He ordered and held the sheet up as I slipped down and laid on the pillow.

He sat on the other side of me and I turned to face him. He opened the book on his lap and started to read.

 ** _Dear Annabeth,_**

 _ **I don't remember you that much. What I remember is being told about you. I remember Angie writing to you all the time. I remember her saying it was relaxing. And now that I have triggered my curse, I decided to introduce myself to you.**_

 _ **I'm Gregory, your youngest older brother. My birthday is January 26th, just two weeks before yours. As of today I am only 19. Angie is in New Orleans, married, happy, having her second child. She tells me that if it is a daughter she is going to name her Annabelle, so it is close to you. Her first born was a so** **n and she named him after our father.**_

 _ **He's now two and the one time she visited the pack he was so serious. She said he was nothing like you as a baby, that he was more like me. I asked her more about you and that's when I decided to visit you.**_

 _ **I met you. You're 16. You look like mom. I introduced myself as Robert because I didn't know what to tell you. I knew that man who was taking care of you was a vampire, and he knew your family. He knew me as a boy and I was thankful he didn't recognize me when we were seen talking.**_

 ** _I asked you about your interests. I asked you about your dreams. I might have come off strong because even through you seemed to be interested in telling me things, you did wave over Damon Salvatore to come save you. I let you leave happy I got to know you just a little bit. Angie was too worried about ever seeing you again. Steven and Eric didn't want to anger the vampire you're with in any way since he did kill off our older males already._**

 _ **I wish I could have told you that I knew who you were, that you were my little sister. But I could just tell how happy you were with Damon. Plus putting you in the line of fire of witches who are still after the pack wasn't anything better than letting you stay safe and happy.**_

I didn't know when I fell asleep, but I remember when that passed because thought my sleep fog I had to remember hearing that the witches were still after my family.

I woke up with the sun in my face and lifted my face from Klaus' side and looked at the window. The sun had just peeked out from behind a hoard of clouds and listening in the house I could hear faint crying. As I pulled away from Klaus' side I felt his arm and I rubbed it as I moved it. His arm steeled against me and pulled me back. I gasped when I felt his lips on my neck and he sighed.

"The baby is crying downstairs." I whispered to him as I tried to pull away.

"If it were a big problem they would have came to get you already." He said and used his strength to turn me over and raised himself over me. "You're mine right now." He declared and though I would have stopped him, there was something that happened between before we got here, and right now that made me feel so open and vulnerable with him. He leaned down and started to kiss me.

I brought my arms up and around his neck to pull him flush with me. His arm around me lifted me as his other moved some blankets until I felt his legs in between mine. I sighed and took a moment to breathe as he moved his hand on the outside of my thigh and pulled it up. I felt his hand move up my thigh and near my ass and he lifted my lower back and I grabbed his neck a little tight at the sudden movement and feeling that I was getting and he pulled back.

"Nik, baby boy unnamed is going on and on-" I heard Rebekah charge in and she stopped and turned around to give us her back. "He wants Annie."

I pushed Klaus back and he flopped on his back and I stood up and got to the door before seeing Hayley holding him and walking to me. "He's been fed and changed and was okay for a little while but then he just started crying." She explained and I just took him. I turned him so he was leaning against me and I rubbed his back as I went down stairs.

"I wanted to run a name past you-"

"If it's that Kol nonsense that will be a no. That boy is too handsome for such a old name." Freya inputted from her spot near a split rope.

"I was going to say Thomas." He was lying. I could smell it.

"Klaus wanted to name him Elijah." I said and Kol looked surprised and looked to his older brother as did almost everyone else. I heard Rebekah and Klaus coming down and she was telling him how they went back and grabbed things with Freya when they all woke up.

"You'd name a son after him but not me?" I heard Kol right away and I just sat back with the baby on my chest still. He was clam now, making gurgling noise and I rubbed his back.

"Elijah is the one person, despite a few times, that never turned on me." He said and just stared Kol in the eyes and waited for him to say something.

"What about Lucas after his father?" Hayley said and I looked at her. "Or Jerimiah after yours." She said and I felt confused for a seconds thinking about Damon and then I just sighed.

"Might as well name him Damon." I said and upturned my mouth and brought him to rest on my lap. "He doesn't look like a Damon." I stated and shook my head. "Or a Jerimiah." I added and started to rub his hands.

"Is he a White, a Salvatore, a Lebonaire, or a Marshall?" Klaus asked coming to sit next to me.

"Or a Mikealson?" Rebekah offered and I looked up at her as she smiled at me and Klaus.

"I think he should be a White." I said and looked over the babes face. "Lucas wouldn't have named his second son after himself." I shook my head believing that wasn't something that wolves really do.

"So Elijah it is?" Kol asked sitting down in a huff and I looked from him to Elijah.

"Does he like you?" Klaus asked and sat forward.

"He likes no one, most of all me. He spit up on me." Elijah said and I smiled and refrained from giggling as I noticed his jacket missing.

"So what are you thinking Annie? Elijah Lucas White?" Hayley asked after a moment of silence and I looked around.

"He's not mine. I can't take care of him. Why should I be the one to name him or deny any name." I said and looked around the room.

"You're older than me... therefore you would get custody of him." She told me and I looked down at him.

"With that logic he should be Freya's child."

"I am not of your blood. Therefore you would be the only oldest person for the baby." She spoke up as she started to play with the rope.

"But since you're the oldest why don't you just lock down the name." Rebekah said and I waited.

"Elijah Lucas White sounds fine to me." She declared and I moved the baby to my arm as she started to transition into why she was playing with the rope. "It had your blood on it. Some of it was spread out and seeped in but I could tell with a spell that anyone who took the rest of this rope could find you easily." She stated and I gulped and looked down at the baby. "Or should I say, she can find anyone in your blood line. Including Hayley."

"And Hope." I said looking to my niece and feeling Klaus move restless beside me.


	20. Chapter 20

I felt compelled to learn things about the baby, so Rebekah and I bonded over bottles, diapers, baby baths, lotions and soaps... almost everything to do with a baby she taught me in a day. Hayley went out with Hope and when they got back I saw tons of clothes and a stroller box and I felt my throat closing up slowly. I felt Klaus rubbing my shoulder and I somewhat relaxed.

Elijah, the babe, was sleeping in my arms more often than not and I had Freya check him twice a day and while Kol and Elijah, the man, went out to check the woods and search for any signs of a witch or the bloody rope. We got things ready to head back to New Orleans and when we got there a day later I was so confused as what I was supposed to do.

I was supposed to leave and be my own person. Find out what I want to do and where I want to go. I was in my room with Elijah in Hopes old crib when I looked down to see Damon on the street. He waved and I backed away. I looked over to the baby to see him sleeping peacefully and I heard Damon calling out for Elijah or Klaus and when I went to my balcony again he was being let in by one of them.

I heard Klaus and Elijah arguing about how to go about the witches coming after me, Hayley, and Hope. Or how to find out if they are coming after us and not another branch of family. I moved closer to the crib when Freya knocked on my door. I looked over and she smiled. "Check up time." She stated and I nodded and picked him up. She took him and as he started wake up I saw Damon coming in. Hayley behind him.

"Hi." He said and looked at Freya, the babe, and then me. "I came to talk."

"What do you want?" I asked and let Freya take the baby into another room.

"You have a ward of your own." He commented and I moved to sit in the rocking chair.

"One of my brothers descendants had a mate that was pregnant when they were killed. Hayley has Hope, she isn't ready for another child, so I am trying." I said and waited some more. "Why are you here?"

"I wanted to take back what I said. I wasn't just going to leave you."

"If I know anything about you Damon... it's that when your mad, no matter who it is at, you shout what you feel. And that is what you were feeling. You would have left as soon as I was married off and happy. I get it Damon. I was a cute kid and I helped you blend into the town... but then I grew up and I was more of a sister. And to have you and Stefan as siblings... that would never be a life I would want." I said shaking my head and waiting. He moved closer and squatted down.

"I went back to Mystic Falls. That's where my mother and father are buried, as you know... but I also buried you there. A part of you." He reached into his leather jacket and held out a small box. "Open it." He urged once he placed it in my hands.

"Damon-"

"Just open it." He said and I pulled the strings holding it closed and I flipped it before taking the string all the way off. It was almost as big as a envelope and I pulled the flap open and saw my portrait. Damon was behind me, hand on my shoulder, and I was smiling and sitting in one of the most expensive dresses ever. Damon had gone all out to get this done and I never knew what happened to it. It was just days before Stefan killed me. "I keep that under my bed no matter where I am." He tapped it and I looked up at him.

"What do you want from me Damon?" I asked and he grabbed the portrait from me.

"I changed when I thought you died Annie. The person you knew died. I became spiteful and malicious and I didn't care who I hurt. And I regret never going back to Smokey Hills because I would have found you. I regret not being around for you as a new vampire. But what I don't want to regret is never talking to you again. I don't want to regret not making up with you and at least getting to know where you are, and how you are." He said and I gulped and looked at the portrait.

"But you said-"

"I said what I used to think to get myself through the hate that Stefan made me through." He said and I just gave him a confused look and heard Klaus shout that he was going to make decisions for me and his daughter.

I stood and walked past Damon holding the portrait still. "Niklaus stop!" He had just walked out the study they had been shouting in and once he spotted me he stopped and took a moment before turning back to Elijah.

"I have told you Elijah, that Hope is my daughter, therefore I am protecting her. You want to split to the ends of the earth... go ahead, but I am keeping my daughter here." He shouted at Elijah before turning back to me. I waited as he got closer to me before I felt Damon behind me. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check in on my daughter... you know the feeling of being a father." Damon said getting closer and trying to stand in front of me.

I heard Freya coming out of the side room and I pushed past both men and reached for Elijah. I put him against me and looked for the time. It was just ten minutes before he was to be fed and I looked at Klaus and then to Damon. "Be nice." I commented to both and went down stairs. I heard them following me and as I started to get things ready for the baby with one hand Klaus took over while Damon watched with his narrowed blue eyes. "Stop staring."

"Can't help it." He said and I titled my head and rocked Elijah from side to side when he started to wake up for his bottle.

"Try." Klaus offered and I gave him a small look as the bottle went into the microwave. "What do you know of the witches that attacked Annabeth's parents and family?" He asked turning to Damon and I moved to focus on the babe.

"First off, it's Annie. Second... the witches were killed off. The younger ones warned that if they retaliate with the whole coven." He said and I titled my head and when the bottle was done Klaus grabbed it and handed it over quickly.

"Who killed them off?" I asked as I set the bottle in Elijah's mouth.

"Steven and Eric White." He said with a shrug and I blinked.

"My brothers." I stated and he looked frozen at the term I used and after a moment flared his nostrils and nodded like it disgusted him. "You know more about those things that happened don't you?" I asked and he looked away and seemed to not want to talk about this.

"I kept tabs on the coven, I kept tabs on your siblings... I made sure they didn't come for you." He stated and I growled and shook my head.

"You made sure that I would be your daughter. Never someone's sister or aunt or mom." I corrected him and he narrowed his eyes again.

"They wanted you to trigger your curse at 13!" He shouted at me making Elijah break from the bottle and start to cry. I glared at him and then set the bottle down. I rubbed his back and bounced him a bit.

"Keep your voice down Damon." I ordered and got the babe to stop crying and I turned him in my arms so he was more on my right and then picked the bottle back up. I set it in his mouth and looked back up. "You knew I had siblings. You knew witches were after them and you never even mentioned them."

"You are my daughter. They left you at that Orphanage and if I am being honest... you would have never known about them if I had any say." He said putting his foot down and I shook my head.

"They wrote to me, for most of their lives. They were scared of ever coming to see me. I would have loved to know I had family or some kind of explanation from them." I said and shook my head. "For the years I was in that house when I could have been looking for them I chose not to because they didn't want me. Do you have any idea how it feels to believe that no one wanted me?"

"I wanted you-"

"Not for the first 8 years of my life. I grew up with Mistress Lenora before you took me in. I wasn't happy until you came along and that was a long time to not be happy. And then I spent another 80 plus years in that house, alone because of that spell you put on me. That spell made sure that I was careful, that I never got angry or jealous... but that just made other emotions rise much higher." I cut him off and looked down at Elijah. "And when I find you again... you're not who you were. You locked me in a room and threw my great great great niece off of a roof."

"I didn't know at the time that she was your family-"

"She was mine!" Klaus shouted this time and immediately looked to me and the babe. "Apologies." He said and I nodded and rocked him some more as he kept sucking his milk from the bottle.

"What is with you two? What are you with Klaus or something? Did you forget what I said he did to everyone?" Damon asked moving forward and I stopped him with a glare.

"You have no right to ask me anything like that. If I was with Klaus you would have no say. I have no say when it comes to that Elena woman that I haven't met because of the long sleep." I accused and shook my head. "You're free Damon. You have lived without me for almost 90 years... you moved on with your life and I need to do the same." I told him and he shook his head.

"You keep saying that I am not the same person... that is because I grew through the years thinking you were dead. I became cold and callus and it isn't going to revert back in a week of being in your presence." He said and I looked to Klaus.

"I am going to put him back in our room... if you could get rid of him-"

"I know the witches names. The family names and other things." Damon cut into my request and Klaus turned to him and narrowed his eyes.

"Then we have something to talk about. After that you can go back to being brothers with Stefan." I stated and moved Elijah around in my arms. Klaus followed me closely after telling Damon to wait down stairs. I walked into my room and started to try to burp the babe and he just let out a small one and I sighed before moving to put him down.

"You don't have to hear what he has to say if you don't want to. I will tell you about it when he is gone." He offered and I sighed again and turned to him.

"He won't tell you anything if I am not there. After he is done telling us everything I would throw him out myself." I said and he snagged my wrist and rubbed his thumb over my hand and I looked down at our hands.

"I will make sure he is gone by the time Elijah wakes up again." He told me and I knew that was a good 2 hours. Hopefully Damon tells us everything about the witches in that time, unless there is a lot more to tell than we all think.

(So I am thinking of taking a small break. I try to write almost every night for this story... but it is getting a little too much. I wouldn't mind if people were liking what I was putting out and giving it reviews but I think I will take a small break from altogether for a week or two. I have so much work and school coming up. Sorry guys, but I am willing to try if you guys review on a couple chapters!)


	21. Chapter 21

I didn't know what to expect. But Damon saying he was helping, and we would only get to know more if he was involved. I stayed seated and while Elijah started to try and persuade Damon to help right away.

Klaus took a more aggressive approach but no matter what Damon wasn't letting up. He wasn't going to. So I stood and grabbed Klaus' arm and looked to Elijah. "If he wants to be an ass about helping, let him be. I will stay here with Elijah while you two and whoever else takes care of the witches and tracking them down." I optimized the risk that Damon wouldn't want to leave if I am here.

"No." Klaus shook his head. "I want you with me so I know you're safe. I want Hope and Elijah to be protected-"

"I can have Caroline take the little ones." I heard Damon push out and I turned to him.

"I wouldn't trust Caroline with anything." I stated and glared at him when he looked confused.

"Now love, Caroline is plenty reliable. She has taken care of babies before. She birthed miracle twins and all that." Klaus told me and I turned to look at him. "If you don't trust her, then trust me." He told me and I just waited before looking towards Damon.

"She is will be in a safe house and everything. She's a great mom." Damon added and I just looked to Elijah. He gave a nod and I sighed before looking up to my room the babe was in and I just nodded before going towards the stairs.

I got to my room and went to look over Elijah. In such a short amount of time he had grown to be like my own. I had grown to love him and care for him. He was mine now. I was comfortable with him now. I reached over and ran my finger over his cheek and down his little arm. I had started to bathe and dress him every morning and night. I had went shopping for him. I had a small thing to attach him to my chest in case I needed to be hands free, though I hadn't used it yet.

He wiggled a bit and almost turned over and I was smiling at the almost accomplishment. He was almost a month along now. He would have a more stabilized head and maybe, if he is progressive he'll turn over before he was 3 months. I rubbed my thumb over his hand and smiled as he squeezed it.

"He's grown on you." I looked up at Elijah's entrance and after a moment I nodded. "I have to admit, when he isn't in a mood to cry with whoever is holding besides you, he is rather nice to be around." He said coming forth and looking in the crib.

"He is having less of those moods. Thankfully. Otherwise he would never sleep when he goes with Caroline." I said thinking about leaving him with her again and feeling a pain. "She's good with kids?" I asked him needing more reassurances.

"Yes... she is a mother to two twins that live with their biological father away from any kind of vampires... she doesn't see them often but for 5 years, she raised them." He told me and I nodded and looked away for a short time before looking back at him.

"She is with Stefan."

"Stefan... in my opinion, is much safer than Damon is... though he can get a bit bitey." He said and I gave him a weary look and then looking back to small Elijah. "He will be safe."

"But I will miss him."

"All mothers miss their young when they have to leave." He told me and I sighed.

"And who is to say how long I will be gone. What if he learns to sit up, or roll over while I am gone." I said and moved to lift him up. I cradled him close and swayed and felt my heart break at all the possibilities.

"Then maybe you should have a phone..." I heard Klaus and looked up to see him raising one in the air. "And have Caroline record it all and send you daily videos." He said and I looked back at him. "She is on her way to work out his schedule."

"Already?" I asked and looked from him to Elijah and then to the babe.

"She was in town with her beau and they are making their way here." He said and I sighed.

"Then I should make sure I write things down." I said and looked at the brothers before me. Elijah nodded and moved to leave, and Klaus not getting the small hint stayed and came closer to see the babe. He also handed me the phone and I sent it in my back pocket.

"He's so precious to you." He commented and I nodded. "He will be safe with her." He told me and I sighed.

"So everyone keeps saying." I ground out and moved to put Elijah back into his crib and turned to find paper.

"So I say. Caroline-"

"Yes, as I recall you wanted a kiss from her to heal me when Tyler Lockwood bit me as you fought in wolf form. You'd never say a bad thing about her would you?" I asked and advanced having enough of him telling me that I should relax about this. "Why don't you go and fight for her favor... I am guessing she was one of the women who did throw themselves at you."

"Now I don't know who you're trying to fool-"

"I am being honest Niklaus. I was happy with helping you and your brother get your daughter back, and then I was nervous when I found out that I was a hybrid. I was confused when I found out about my family. And slightly scared when I realized they had my blood and would track down every living descendent. I am hindering new emotions after being bound for so many years... and you think I have time to fool you? If anything you are trying to fool me." I stated and glared at him.

"The only reason you're still talking down to me is because you're jealous." He said and came forward to touch my chin and I jerked it away.

"There is nothing to be jealous of. You are not mine, and I am not yours. Jealousy is a feeling that doesn't resonate in my mind. Maybe it hasn't come yet, or maybe I am just not a person who cares if they are brushed aside for another because that means the person who did the brushing was not for me. Why don't you tell me Niklaus, if Caroline was not with Stefan... would you even be talking to me right now?"

"Nik!" I heard Rebekah after a long pause and I turned without an answer and started to grab a suitcase she had and put it on the bed.

I felt him leave the room and I heard them talking down the hall. I packed and then sat with Elijah in my arms. I rocked and stayed where I was even when I heard Caroline and Stefan's voices downstairs.

I heard footsteps before Hayley poked her head in and then entered the room right after. "Are you ready to head out?"

"I should be." I nodded and stood up. "We have to go and he needs to be safe." I declared and nodded.

"We're taking two cars. Elijah and I were taking one-"

"I'll be in the one without Niklaus." I stated and she nodded.

"Then with us." She nodded and I did too. I pulled Elijah up and placed my lips on his head and took a deep inhale.

"Let's go." I said and moved downstairs. I took the paper I had and she helpfully took the suitcases. I went down the stairs seeing Stefan and Klaus looking pretty happy to be around each other... and I walked to Caroline.

"This is baby Elijah?" She asked looking so happy.

"Yes." I said and moved to show him to her. "I wrote down his schedule, and the things I use to bathe him." I said and held out the paper first. She looked it over and nodded. "He does go a bit grumpy when he has been awake 15 minutes past any of the sleep schedule and will only sleep if I am holding him so I warn you that he needs to follow this." I said tapping the paper and then looking down at the baby. "Elijah and everyone else here say you're a mother of some kind... therefore I am trusting you with him." I said and moved to hand him over.

"He will be taken care of. I promise. I missed taking care of babies and I wish I could have more-"

"I get it. Now we are going." I cut her off and turned to look at Hayley. I took my bag from her and as I was walking out I heard Klaus.

"She's an ally, nothing more. Once things settle down I don't care where she goes." I held my head up high and kept walking. I put my bag in the back of the car Hayley was climbing into and then moved to the back. I slid in and waited as the others divvied up who was going where and I was pissed as all hell when Damon slid in on the other end.

"Hi there." He smiled at me and I turned my face away and glared out the window as Elijah started the car. "So... the last I heard, the witch we need to find is living out her life in peace, in South Carolina." I waited as we started to drive.

"Who is she?" Hayley turned to ask and I waited for the answer.

"One that was quite helpful a couple decades back. I still kept tabs on the witches... and when I needed one I knew who to blackmail." He stated and I huffed and looked out the window. We turned a couple streets as he told me about how he wanted to use the woman as a helper to crumble Stefan's resolve to hold his humanity. She did her work, and he left her alone.

I rolled my eyes at his happiness at the good times he and Stefan had for 8 years before a woman named Lexi brought Stefan back to his salvation. I tried to ignore him and stop from getting absorbed in his stories. He told them in such a way that I wanted to laugh when he paused for it and look over when he seemed to rethink what he was saying. But I stayed looking out the window.

I felt the phone buzz in my back pocket and pulled it out before seeing an unknown number and then opening the message. It was a picture of Elijah eating and I smiled. I wrote back that he burps between the half way point or he won't finish. She messaged back that she would do just that and I sighed and looked back at the picture.

"Missing the young one already huh?" Damon asked leaning over me and I looked at him for the smallest of seconds and then to the window again. "Oh come on. Annie can we just get along?"

"You threw a little girl off a roof." I stated again like it was on repeat.

"I also saved one and raised her as my own, made sure that those she grew up with wasn't treated as rotten as you were before I found you. I also never really thought that the little girl would be harmed. Her parents are both super fast and could have caught her, you were just closer." He said and I turned a glare at him before looking towards Hayley in front of me and then Elijah as he drove. "Nothing?" He asked like he had worked so hard.

"What do you expect? Me to just realize that you were really only trying to save me? When you see what I do you'll realize why this is so hard to see past." I said and looked at him for a bit longer as I shook my head and then towards the window.

"You think I don't know how you see me? You see me more of a monster now than when you found out that I was a vampire. The only difference is that one benefited you more than the other and you are more mad about being a kept wolf than you are about me pushing a girl off a building knowing someone would catch her. Maybe I should be the one mad. Maybe I should be the one that doesn't want to talk to you. You knew the minute I was a vampire that you would want to be turned one day and don't you dare deny it! I know it. It was the only reason that you weren't scared." He accused and I turned to look at him before glaring.

"I wasn't scared because you were the only person in my life to ever be nice to me. I knew somewhere deep down that if you would have wanted to hurt me or kill me you would have done that at the well that day you found me." I stated and shook my head. "Maybe I did want to be a vampire some time after I realized what it meant. But that was because that would mean I got to be your daughter or sister for the rest of our long lives together. I would have loved to be cared for and make more memories with you Damon! But after all you did for me... those things aren't what sticks out now." I told him and shook my head. "Pull over." I begged when we came into another town and saw a diner.

We parked there with nothing else said and I strolled into the place and sat alone until Hayley sat with me. We ate in silence and when it came time to get back into the cars I realized Damon was getting in beside Klaus. They both glared at me and I just felt the tears come to my eyes as I slid into the car beside Freya who was already trying to fall back asleep.

We have 4 more hours and I was going to be as quiet as a mouse, for here on out. No more talking. No more yelling. No more accusations and no more answers. I grabbed the books we brought along and just started to read.

This time I was going through Steven's.

 _ **Dear Little sister,**_

 _ **You will never know me, at least not in a way that most siblings know each other. Like for instance, I could tell you that Angie is allergic to Maple. I know that if you tell Eric not to do something because it's not safe, or annoying, he does it with gusto and only gets minor injuries. I know our brother Gregory loves to paint.**_

 _ **Knowing these things makes me wonder what you'll be allergic to. About who and what you won't head. About what you'll be good at and be when you grow and flourish.**_

 _ **There is a small part of me that wishes you trigger your curse and somehow find your way back to us. And there is another part that is just so happy that you are free of this. The curse our sister has, our parents had. Our pack has... it's one that most say is inevitable. I will one day trigger it. So will our brothers.**_

 _ **It's just a matter of time. It would be just an accident. I could be passing over a snowy hill while hunting and accidently stabbing their best friend. It could be pushing a boy away and having him trip and crack his skull.**_

 _ **It could be anything. I as much as I wish to know what you'll love to do as you grow, I would rather never know than to see you in this kind of pain our older sister is in every full moon.**_

 _ **A woman came through our pack, told us that it was wise to let you know our feelings and wishes. I am giving it a try. I might not do it often, but when I do it will be because I thought of you and your future and your personality and our parents.**_

 _ **I wish you the best life you could ever want for yourself.**_

 _ **Your brother Steven.**_


	22. Chapter 22

"She's ready for you now." I heard a nurse and I looked towards Damon and then the others before realizing that I was going in with Damon and both brothers. I walked between then, in front of Klaus and Elijah but behind Damon.

"Well if it isn't my old Sunshine. How are you darling?" Damon raised his hands up and went to kiss her cheeks before taking her hands. "This is my daughter, actually you might know her, Annabeth White." I saw the older woman go from confused to as pale as she could get in a matter of seconds.

"Your the last sibling." She stated and I got closer.

"Right you are... now I want to know who, in your family, has a bone to pick with her biological ones." Damon said and smiled his little fake one and batted his blue eyes.

"The only cousin I know of is Rose... if she had a daughter before she got older that would be who you're looking for. There is a curse in our family. One that developed into a curse. Every woman in Josephine's bloodline would avenge her sisters death, and if she didn't do it by age 28, she would be forced to have a child. A daughter. It would continue until the line ended with one of us, or hers." She stated and gave me a dirty look.

"And who is Josephine?" I asked and she gave a dry laugh before coughing.

"She was the worst witch to scorn, and your father-"

"Biological." Damon cut in and I ignored him and waited.

"He killed her baby sister. She was only 17."

"She was with the wolves when they changed during the full moon, I reckon she got what she deserved." I heard Klaus and I gave him a brief glance before looking down towards the woman in the bed who was glaring at him.

"She was innocent and not even of age. Therefore, for the death and the way your father treated her as if she were no one important, Josephine decided to hunt him, his wife, his children, everyone related and show him how unimportant they would be to history. She died going after your brother Eric. She had given birth to a daughter... passed on her hatred. Eric evaded her by changing his name, Josephine's daughter, Samantha had no blood to find him so she got no where for a long time."

"Say the new descendent has some blood." Damon offered out and the woman started to laugh again before smiling.

"The White line will come to an end and the witches who were burdened by your family will be able to rest easy." She smiled. "When it is my time I won't be purged for power."

"You will be... because I am not dying." I stated and she sighed. "What happens if this new witch hasn't had a child? Does the curse or whatever die with her?"

"No, it gets passed to the next blood relative." She said and sighed before moving her old body around before settling down.

"Who would that be?" Elijah asked and I waited.

"Well the one you are looking for is named Sara. You'll have to do your digging about who it gets past to because when I started to help you..." She focused on Damon and I noticed how he actually looked concerned. "I was cut out of the family forever. No coven would talk with me and I didn't know about my family." I looked away and waited for a last name to go with Sara.

"Do you have children?" Klaus asked and I looked up at the question and glared.

"No. Another thing they took from me." I heard the sadness in her voice and I watched how she looked back at Damon. "We had a good run before I started to age." She cupped his cheek and he gave her his 'lady killer' smile and I stood up and gagged.

"I'll be looking for somewhere to throw up." I stated and walked out of the room. I noticed Hayley pacing in the hallway and I walked to her.

"Does she know anything?" She asked and I nodded and started to tell her about the things the woman fessed up about her family and it wasn't until I felt us being watched that I looked around.

There was a woman with red hair, so out of place as she leaned against a counter talking with some other woman. I looked to Hayley and then back and then towards the room. She looked back and I met Klaus' eye when I started to listen to the women.

"Slip her this and she'll pass in her sleep." I noticed a pill in her hand and I titled my head. I made sure not to make a spectacle of my self before the nurse walked towards the woman's room. Klaus had past her on her way in and I looked towards the red head only to see that she had walked off already.

"What?" He asked getting to me and I looked past him to see the woman getting situated to sit up and I brush past him and then towards the nurse holding out the pill and the womans cup of water.

"What is that pill?" I asked getting to compel the answer out of the nurse.

"I am not sure, she just told me to give it to her." She said and held out the pill to her and when Damon took it instead she turned and walked out.

"She's trying to kill me." The woman announced and laughed. "They've tried to kill me ever since word got out that Lebonare was a descendent from the White wolves. And that her child, was the daughter of an Original." She stated and looked to Klaus. "They're trying to find ways to get rid of you all."

"That is stunningly helpful." Elijah sighed and walked closer. "I am guessing 'they' is a coven?"

"The same coven I was born into. Mostly family now, but they are all powerful." She stated and coughed.

"Where do we find them?" Klaus' voice came up behind me and I just waited for the answer.

"You'll need help. You need a coven of witches of your own." She said and took a deep breath before sighing and looking like she was in pain. "I'm dying and you people might have to get me to write down step by step... but I am telling you now, that your sister Freya won't help much against a powerful coven who practices dark magic." She said looking at all of us. "Find a whole coven that practices simple... but powerful." She coughed again and Damn grabbed her before smoothing over her cheek as she started to look faint.

"I remember just the coven." Elijah said before walking out. Hayley was in the doorway and listening and when we walked out to see Rebekah and Freya they looked like they didn't know what to do in here. "Let's head east. Nebraska here we come."

"Care to share with the others who don't know Elijah?" Damon asked moving to walk next to me and Klaus ended up on the other side and they both touched my side when we were heading out of the building. The doors separated and as they both touched me I made a haste move to my right before hitting the pole and slid shoulders with Damon and started to hurry to the car. I got in the back and took deep breaths.

I heard people getting in this car, the other, and when I heard a car door slam I looked over to see Klaus focusing on the steering wheel. He started the car and backed up with a squeal and I heard Elijah sigh. "Seems you get under my brothers skin more than anyone else." He said and I looked down.

"Don't know why... he wants me gone when we get back." I stated and looked towards him and then back when I heard a horn blare.

"I don't know what you heard... but he definitely means to keep you close." He told me and I just leaned towards the window and when we pulled up to a airport with a jet I was beyond nervous. I just stood there and watched as they got it fueled and when they started to board I realized that while I was freaking out on the inside, no one else had a problem with this. I moved to go up the stairs as the last person in and that was when Rebekah poked her head out.

"There you are, come on and sit with me. I think it's time we had a long chat... and not about clothes." She waved me in, pulled me to her little section she was sitting in and I buckled up. "So, when is your birthday?"

"In three weeks." Damon answered and I turned to glare at him.

"I could answer for myself." I told him and looked back to Rebekah. "The 23rd." I said and she looked happy.

"What is your favorite thing about the new technology?"

"I don't know. I haven't tried much. I hate phones. Unsure about planes, but cars are nice." I told her and she smiled widely.

"Have you seen any of the movies yet?" She asked and I shook my head. "I think I know a perfect movie. It's a little childish but I think you would relate to it. It's called Beauty and the Beast." She said and as she started to tell me all about the plot and the singing and things like that I felt eyes on me. We were still getting ready for take off and as I looked around Klaus was glaring at his sister while Freya and Kol were writing things down. Elijah was talking with Hayley and when I turned back around I noticed Damon watching me.

I didn't give him a glance as I refocused on what Rebekah was telling me about the spelled human prince who held a girl hostage and tried his best to be presentable and as they spent time together he turned more into the man he was before the spell, and when she said she loved him and proved it, he turned human again.

I went with listening instead of asking questions and when she was done I was holding the arm rests as we started bolting down the runway. I closed my eyes and chanted that it would be okay and when we were bumping before taking off I took deep breaths. I felt a slight shift in air and while we were still going up someone lifted my hand and squeezed it tight. I knew just by the feeling it was Klaus and while I leaned back I felt my exhaustion hit me so I gave in a bit and shifted until I could lean my head against his shoulder.


	23. Chapter 23

The flying was bad enough, and the nap I took was comforting and I could forget that we were thousands of feet above the earth... but the landing. I clinged to Klaus' hand so tight I was sure that my fingernails were digging into him and was bleeding. Luckily he wasn't when we finally stopped and slowed down. I waited until they all departed and I stood up and Klaus waited until we were alone before facing me.

"Want to tell me why you think I want you gone?" He asked and I looked at him and then the seats before shaking my head. "No, I want to know. Is it because you want to leave?" He asked taking a step closer.

"You said you didn't care where I went when we got back. I heard you." I said and looked up to his eyes and he looked confused before shaking his head and smiling slightly.

"No, you heard me say that after Kol asked what I was to do with Caroline. He thought my feelings for her were greater than my feelings for you. He was wrong, therefore I told him that I didn't care what happened to her when we got back." He shook his finger at me and I looked away before he hooked that same finger under my chin and pulled it back to face him.

"You've been mad at me."

"I've been giving you space love. You were jealous, or mad about me trust Caroline that I thought I would give you time away to cool off."

"I wasn't jealous." I repeated and he gave me a crooked smile and took a step closer and rubbed his nose with mine. "I just hated all of you repeating how great she was with kids." I mumbled and gulped when he moved one hand around my waist and rubbed soothing circles on my back and his other hand went to my hip and went down near my ass before gripping it slightly and pulling me flush with him.

"I told you that to make sure you wouldn't worry." He rubbed again and leaned down. "Now, I am done giving you space, you are riding with me, I have your siblings journals with me." He said and I looked into his eyes and saw him smiling again. He leaned down and laid his lips on mine, I melted at the few seconds of contact and gripped his bicep and his shirt.

I felt him pulling away and before he completely took his lips away from mine he nipped my bottom and forced me to walk in front of him. "Are you finally ready Nik?" I heard Rebekah and I smiled down at her when I noticed the others in another car already.

"Get in the car Rebekah." He ordered and moved to put me in the passenger side before moving around and getting in himself. He started to move the chair and the mirrors and I looked at other things the 'crew' on the plane were now putting in the back of our car.

Klaus got out for a moment and grabbed a smaller bag and moved to the car once again before holding it out to me to take. I smiled when I opened it and saw the journals.

I decided to read Erics and opened the first one.

 **Dearest little sister,**

 **I wouldn't know what to say to you, nor if you'll ever see this but I would like to share with you some of my wishes as the older brother.**

 **I wish you would find someone that would love you. Someone that takes care of you and honors your wishes. A wolf maybe. You were betrothed to an Alpha son by the name of Lockwood, and meeting that jerk 2 weeks ago I am pleased to announce that you are safe from that marriage. He demanded some other wolf when he came. We had to discuss how you were no longer available and that you were tucked away somewhere safe from the witches.**

 **He wanted my intended. Safe to say we actually love each other and that she almost tried to kill him when he tried to 'persuade' her to consider. If his father wasn't talking to me at the time he would have been dead and I would have triggered my own curse.**

 **I miss our sister. She left nearly 2 months ago and is writing every other day to us. She says she has found some kind of compassion for her new husband and that she hopes that she gets to visit.**

 **I wish I knew if you would read these, and honestly I will write again and again. I will seek you out on your birthday. Maybe we'll talk, maybe we won't. I just want to see you age like I would as if you were still within our family. I almost remember you as a baby. You cried so little compared to Gregy.**

 **I wish I got to realize that being your older brother was a privilege. I still feel protective, which is why I know you're safe with that Vampire, despite him killing all the older males in our pack. He was misinformed about our intentions with you. Someone informed me an elder stated you had to trigger your curse, but in fact you don't. I don't to be alpha.**

 **I haven't yet. Steven did last month. Just after the full moon. Next Saturday is the full moon and he is so nervous and is mostly keeping to himself.**

 **Since Angie has us all writing to you that is what he does most of the time.**

 **Until next time.**

 **~Your Eldest brother**

I flipped the page and then another as he told me about his wedding, about his bride Moira. About Angie's husband and her unborn child. He mentioned how he triggered his curse by protecting the pack from witches. He mentioned how his first born, was actually stillborn.

He talked about our brothers and their marriages and how Angie visited twice a year with her two sons and her daughter. He talked about him and his wife trying.

He also mentioned hearing about my death and how he knew I was a vampire.

I stopped reading after that because I felt the need to catch up with my other siblings. I pulled out Angie's book and flipped until I was where I left off and I leaned to the side for a more comfortable position and felt Klaus' hand touch mine before pulling my fingers to wrap around his. I looked around as he drove on the open road, he was again, following Elijah and I was looking around before seeing Elijah turning off on a dirt road.

I looked around before we were forced to a stop. Klaus hit the gas and the engine roared but we went nowhere. He growled and shoved his door open and I opened mine slowly as I noticed Hayley pushing her door open as well as Elijah and the rest of the people.

I looked around when I heard Klaus calling out for the witches to show themselves. I felt my head begin to ache, and then it got worse. I screamed out and was sent to my knees before feeling hands on my neck as if about to snap it and I screamed again. I heard a growl that sounded a lot like Klaus again and I looked over to see him looking over to me and then the snap came and I was out.

When I woke up I looked around and rolled my neck. Damon was on my left, Klaus on my right, Hayley next to him and Elijah on her left. Freya was to Damon's right and Rebekah was on hers. I looked over to see Klaus waking up, he turned his eyes to me right away before sitting up and looking at his siblings and Damon before pulling my chin up and looking over it.

"You're okay." He whispered and moved to stand up now. He moved to Rebekah and she came awake with a hiss and then Freya. Hayley and Elijah were awake before Damon and when I touched his shoulder and tried to move him he didn't respond until Klaus kicked his leg and he groaned.

"He'll live." Rebekah told us and moved to look around. "Who the bloody hell were you trying to find Elijah?" She asked turning to her eldest brother and I waited, keeping an eye on the conversation and then on Damon who was waking up slower.

"Do you remember after we fled New Orleans we ran into a small coven that helped cast a cloaking spell, in return we got rid of the other covens trying to rip apart their family." He said and moved to the door. "They said that they would be in our dept. They made a blood oath." He said and pulled the door open. "I am guessing that is why the lesser vampire wasn't a pin cushion." He nodded towards Damon who was now getting up.

"Hybrids and witches and Originals... when did I become the normal one here?" He asked struggling to get up and started to dust himself on.

"Let's get going." Hayley announced before Elijah started to guide us around the small house. No one else was in it and when he went to go outside we realized we were stuck inside. I heard a hiss and turned to see Damon pulling away from the sunlight drifting through the windows.

"They took my ring." He stated and I noticed Elijah and Rebekah search for theirs and give each other a look. Hyrbids weren't vulnerable to sunlight, and Freya was a witch... but them... they would burn. "Witches are never a good thing to just drop in on." Damon said giving Elijah a look.

"Have to agree with Damon here Elijah. These witches might have helped us out a long time ago, but these aren't the same women." Rebekah sighed out and moved closer to the darkness and away from the sun.

"I have this." I said pulling off my necklace and looking towards her. That was where I hung my day light ring. I undid the clasp and dangle it up until the ring fell into my palm. I turned to give it over to Rebekah since she was the only one who would be able to fit it.

"You're really giving her the ring I gave you." Damon groaned and I looked over to him and saw him running a hand through his hair.

"What am I going to do with it? I don't need some day light ring." I stated and then looked towards the other side of the room as Rebekah came towards me and took the ring.

"It's not the magic that you would want it for." He stated and I rolled my eyes.

"Can we stop talking about the ring and make a plan to find Elijah's?" Freya stated and I just turned quiet as they made a plan. I felt Klaus pacing near me and I turned towards him as he touched my lower back.

So far the plan was for us to go and be distractions while Hayley defended Elijah and Damon just incase any of the witches were going to come back. Rebekah and Freya were going to go into the main house and they were going to do a spell in every room to see if they appear.

"Come on then love, a witch is always tasty this early in the afternoon." Klaus whispered before kissing my cheek and I let him grab my hand and pull me towards the front door.

"Behave brother, we don't want to anger them if they are just being cautious." Freya stated and I kept that in mind.

"I will do my best." He said before rubbing my hand with his thumb and speeding us away.


End file.
